Prince Harry and Elton John are among a group of celebs who have launched new lawsuits against Associated Newspapers.
In addition to the Duke of Sussex, along with the singer and Elton's husband David Furnish, Associated Newspapers—the publisher of British tabloids Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday—are also facing suits filed by Elizabeth Hurley, Sadie Frost, and Baroness Doreen Lawrence of Clarendon.
According to court documents obtained by Variety, three separate lawsuits have been filed against the company in London's High Court by Gunnercooke, who represent Elton and Furnish, Elizabeth and Doreen. Per the outlet, Prince Harry and Sadie's lawsuits have not appeared in court records but their law firm has confirmed that legal action "has been launched."
According to an Oct. 6 press release shared to E! News from the Hamlins law firm (who are representing Prince Harry and Frost), these "individuals have become aware of compelling and highly distressing evidence that they have been the victims of abhorrent criminal activity and gross breaches of privacy by Associated Newspapers."
As for the "criminal activity," the press release accuses the company of "hiring of private investigators to secretly place listening devices inside people's cars and homes, commissioning of individuals to listen into and record people's telephone calls," as well as "the payment of police officials, with corrupt links to private investigators, for inside, sensitive information."
Additionally, the publisher is accused of also being responsible for "the impersonation of individuals to obtain medical information from private hospitals, clinics, and treatment centers," and "the accessing of bank accounts, credit histories and financial transactions through illicit means and manipulation."
In response, an Associated Newspapers spokesperson shared a statement to E! News on Oct. 6, denying the claims brought against the organization.
"We utterly and unambiguously refute these preposterous smears which appear to be nothing more than a pre-planned and orchestrated attempt to drag the Mail titles into the phone hacking scandal concerning articles up to 30 years old," their statement read. "These unsubstantiated and highly defamatory claims—based on no credible evidence—appear to be simply a fishing expedition by claimants and their lawyers, some of whom have already pursued cases elsewhere."
This isn't the first lawsuit Prince Harry has brought forth against a tabloid belonging to the publisher. The Duke of Sussex currently has an ongoing defamation case against the Mail on Sunday.
This past July, Prince Harry scored a small legal victory against the newspaper after a High Court judge ruled that parts of a February 2022 article were in fact, defamatory. At the time, the Mail on Sunday declined to comment about the ongoing case.