In a stunning victory for Harry, 40, the younger son of King Charles, News Group Newspapers (NGN), publisher of The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World, also admitted it had intruded into the private life of his late mother, Princess Diana.
Harry's lawyer, David Sherborne, said the publisher had agreed to pay the prince substantial damages. A source familiar with the settlement said it involved an eight-figure sum.
"In a monumental victory today, News UK have admitted that The Sun, the flagship title for Rupert Murdoch's UK media empire, has indeed engaged in illegal practices," Harry and his co-claimant Tom Watson said in a statement.
"Today the lies are laid bare. Today, the cover-ups are exposed. And today proves that no one stands above the law. The time for accountability has arrived," said the statement, read by Sherborne outside London's High Court.
Harry's lawyer David Sherborne read a statement in saying NGN offered an unequivocal apology. (AP PHOTO)
Harry had been suing NGN at the High Court, accusing its newspapers of unlawfully obtaining private information about him from 1996 until 2011.
The trial of the royal's case and a lawsuit from former senior lawmaker Tom Watson was due to start at London's High Court on Tuesday but following last-gasp talks, the two sides reached a settlement, with NGN saying there had been wrongdoing at The Sun, something it had denied for years.
But Harry's lawyer said a deal had been struck with NGN agreeing to pay significant damages and that NGN had admitted he had been the victim of unlawful activity by the Sun and had suffered phone-hacking at the hands of the News of the World.
"NGN offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion by The Sun between 1996 and 2011 into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun," Sherborne said.
A widespread phone hacking scandal forced Rupert Murdoch to close News of the World in 2011. (AP PHOTO)
"NGN further apologises to the Duke for the impact on him of the extensive coverage and serious intrusion into his private life as well as the private life of Diana, Princess of Wales, his late mother, in particular during his younger years."
In all the cases that have been brought against NGN since a widespread phone hacking scandal forced Murdoch to close News of the World in 2011, Harry's case got the closest to trial.
The case was one of three lawsuits Harry has brought accusing British tabloids of violating his privacy by eavesdropping on phone messages or using private investigators to unlawfully help them score scoops.
The lawsuit was due to start at London's High Court on Tuesday. (EPA PHOTO)
His case against the publisher of the Daily Mirror ended in victory when the judge ruled that phone hacking was "widespread and habitual" at the newspaper and its sister publications.
During that trial in 2023, Harry became the first senior member of the royal family to testify in court since the late 19th century, putting him at odds with the monarchy's desire to keep its problems out of view.
His feud with the press dates back to his youth, when the tabloids took glee in reporting on everything from his injuries to his girlfriends to dabbling with drugs.
Agencies
