Overview
- Countess Karen Spencer accepted a Part 36 offer to end Catrine Jarman’s misuse‑of‑private‑information claim without any admission of unlawful conduct.
- Earl Charles Spencer has been recorded by the High Court as liable to pay legal costs reported to exceed £2 million and £4,500 in damages to Jarman.
- Mr Justice Peel noted that aspects of the indemnity remain hotly disputed and that neither the final sum nor the calculation method has yet been agreed.
- Arbitrator James Ewins KC, acting in the Spencers’ divorce, required the earl to indemnify the countess for sums needed to accept the settlement, including her King’s Bench costs.
- Jarman sued in October 2024 alleging the countess disclosed her multiple sclerosis without consent, which the countess denies; a prior costs hearing found the defendant’s fees were within an expected range.