Prince Harry Withdraws His Libel Lawsuit Against Associated Newspapers – Robb Report

We may not be seeing Prince Harry in court anytime soon.

The royal has dropped his case against a British newspaper group, People reported on Friday. Harry has withdrawn his suit accusing Associated Newspapers, which publishes The Mail on Sunday, of libel. 

“The Duke of Sussex discontinues all of this claim,” Harry’s lawyers told the court.

Initially, Harry brought his case after The Mail on Sunday published an article in February 2022 about the prince’s efforts to reinstate his police protection. That story claimed that Harry had tried to keep his legal fight private, and that once the news broke, his aides tried to portray the case in a positive light. In July of that year, a British court said parts of the article were defamatory, and since then the case has wound its way through further courts, with a justice saying it should go to trial.

Now, however, Harry is avoiding any public litigation by withdrawing his claim. But he is still focused on his right to security, People noted. The royal is waiting on a final decision as to whether the Royal and VIP Executive Committee acted lawfully when it comes to his and his family’s security. In December, he explained how he doesn’t feel safe returning to the United Kingdom with Meghan Markle and their two children.

“It was with great sadness to both of us that my wife and I felt forced to step back from this role and leave the country in 2020,” he said in a statement. “The U.K. is my home. The U.K. is central to the heritage of my children and a place I want them to feel at home as much as where they live at the moment in the United States. That cannot happen if there is no possibility to keep them safe when they are on U.K. soil. . .I can’t put my wife in danger like that, and given my experiences in life, I’m reluctant to unnecessarily put myself in harm’s way too.”

While this particular case may be over, Harry is involved in other lawsuits, including one against the same newspaper group for illegal information gathering. And in more recent cases against British publishers, he’s come out victorious, proving libel and other unlawful acts. That’s given the prince a bit of energy when it comes to legal matters.

“I’ve been told that slaying dragons will get you burned,” he said in a December statement. “But in light of today’s victory and the importance of doing what is needed for a free and honest press—it’s a worthwhile price to pay. The mission continues.”

This mission has come to a somewhat uneventful end, though.