Seven solicitors from the firm were involved in the litigation. Its founder, Mark Thomson, who holds full ownership of the company, acted as coordinating solicitor for the entire group while also personally representing Ms Frost and Sir Simon throughout the proceedings.
The group’s case was thrown out following a High Court trial in July, with Mr Justice Nicklin ruling that the entire claim, spanning 55 articles allegedly sourced through phone hacking, blagging and other unlawful methods, was built on inference rather than hard evidence. He dismissed it as “speculative”.
Prince Harry responded with a statement lambasting the decision, calling the 426-page ruling “a complete and obvious whitewash”.
The financial consequences for the claimants could prove severe. The judge imposed a rare indemnity costs order, which removes the usual cap on what the losing side must pay towards the winner’s legal expenses and eliminates the requirement to demonstrate those costs were proportionate.