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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11Prince Harry withdrew his libel claim against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), publisher of the Mail on Sunday, on 19 January 2024. His spokesperson said he was focusing on a separate legal challenge over publicly funded UK security and on his family’s safety. The withdrawal came after a December 2023 interim ruling allowed ANL’s honest-opinion defence to proceed—not after a trial or a final decision on whether the article was libellous.
What the libel claim was about
The dispute arose from a Mail on Sunday article published on 20 February 2022 about Harry’s challenge to the UK Government’s decision not to continue publicly funded security for him when he visited the country. He had launched that judicial review challenge in September 2021. The libel claim against ANL was issued on 23 February 2022.
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In an earlier stage of the libel case, the court determined the meaning readers would take from the article. That meaning included allegations that Harry had made public statements about being willing to pay for UK police protection, while court documents showed he made the offer only after proceedings began. It also included the article’s opinion that he had tried to mislead and confuse the public. Those were the meanings attributed to the article by the court; they were not a final finding that the allegations were true.
Why did Prince Harry withdraw the claim?
In a contemporaneous report, the Guardian said Harry’s spokesperson cited the passage of time, the security judicial review and the safety of his family. The spokesperson said the main hearing in the separate security case had taken place and the family was awaiting the decision, and that Harry’s focus remained on that matter and his family’s safety. This was the spokesperson’s explanation, not a finding by the court.
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What the December 2023 ruling did—and did not—decide
On 8 December 2023, the High Court refused Harry’s application to strike out ANL’s honest-opinion defence or obtain summary judgment against it. The court held that the defence had a real prospect of success and could proceed to trial. The question at that stage was whether an honest person could have held the opinion in the article on the facts available when it was published.
The ruling did not establish that the article was true, that ANL had won the libel case, or that Harry had lost at trial. The Judiciary’s press summary expressly described the application as interim: “This is not the final decision in the claim, which will now continue.” Harry withdrew the claim weeks later, before that trial-stage decision on the defence.
Timeline of the proceedings
- 20 February 2022: The Mail on Sunday published the article about Harry’s security challenge.
- 23 February 2022: Harry issued his libel claim against ANL.
- 8 July 2022: A High Court judgment addressed preliminary questions about the article’s meaning, whether it contained fact or opinion, and whether its meaning was defamatory at common law.
- 8 December 2023: The court refused Harry’s application to dismiss ANL’s honest-opinion defence, allowing it to proceed.
- 19 January 2024: The Guardian reported that Harry had withdrawn the libel claim.
What is known about costs?
The Guardian reported that Harry had been ordered to pay £48,447 toward ANL’s legal bills after losing the December 2023 application. It also reported the Mail’s position that Harry would face £250,000 in publisher costs, plus his own lawyers’ fees; Harry’s spokesperson said speculation about how costs would be determined was premature. Those reports concern costs discussed around the interim ruling. The available account does not establish a final post-withdrawal costs order or the formal court record of the discontinuance, so a final liability after withdrawal cannot be stated here.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How this differs from Harry’s other case against ANL
The withdrawn libel claim concerned the February 2022 Mail on Sunday article. It is separate from Harry’s other proceedings against ANL. A Judiciary case page dated 21 August 2026 lists him among seven claimants in a different case against the publisher. That later case is not a continuation of the withdrawn libel claim.
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Sources
- Courts and Tribunals Judiciary, press summary for Duke of Sussex v Associated Newspapers Limited [2023] EWHC 3120 (KB), 8 December 2023.
- The Guardian, report on Harry’s withdrawal, 19 January 2024.
- High Court judgment on preliminary issues, 8 July 2022.
- Judiciary case page for the separate proceedings, dated 21 August 2026.
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