Overview

• Baroness Lawrence says the duke contacted her after her name kept appearing in material he reviewed for his own claim, describing her reaction as disbelief.
• She has called for a public apology from the Daily Mail and says its actions added to her family’s trauma following her son Stephen’s murder.
• Lawrence is among high-profile claimants including Liz Hurley, Sir Elton John, David Furnish and Sir Simon Hughes alleging unlawful newsgathering such as phone tapping, voicemail hacking, blagging and even burglaries to order.
• Associated Newspapers Limited rejects the accusations and has labeled the claims lurid and simply preposterous as it defends the case in the High Court.
• In July a judge ordered Prince Harry to disclose documents on alleged payments, and a nine-week High Court trial is scheduled to begin in January 2026 with combined legal costs reported at more than £38 million.