The Duke of Sussex has launched a libel action against Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Mail on Sunday, the same newspaper against which his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, is also pursuing separate legal action. The documents were lodged with the high court by Schillings, the Sussexes’ legal team, on 27 November.
The Telegraph reported that the case is said to relate to a story published by the Sunday newspaper in October, which alleged that The Duke of Sussex had failed to maintain contact with the Royal Marines after he formally stepped down from royal duties.
After The Duke and Duchess stepped back from their roles as senior royals, Prince Harry gave up his honorary military titles. However, his ceremonial roles as Captain-General of the Royal Marines, Honorary Air Force Commandant of the Royal Air Force base Honington in Suffolk, and Honorary Commodore-in-Chief of the Royal Naval Commands’ Small Ships and Diving, were all put on hold.
The Duchess of Sussex has also taken legal action against the Mail on Sunday for breach of privacy after the newspaper published extracts of a letter she sent to her estranged father, Thomas Markle. The trial, which had been scheduled for January 2021, will now be heard in autumn 2021 after the Duchess successfully applied for an adjournment for confidential reasons.
Prince Harry is also suing the Sun and the Daily Mirror over alleged phone hacking, claiming that his voicemails have been intercepted.
