Prince Harry is set for a “lonely experience” as the Duke of Sussex prepares to spend four days giving evidence to the High Court in a privacy lawsuit against the publisher of the Sun Newspaper.
The Duke of York, 40, will be questioned on news stories about his private life in the witness box.
He will not be able to discuss his testimony with anyone, including his wife Meghan Markle.
The youngest son of King Charles wants to prove that the newspaper took part in illegal practices and has accepted that he will likely end up paying millions in legal costs even if he wins.
Prince Harry is set for a “lonely experience” as the Duke of Sussex prepares to spend four days giving evidence to the High Court in a privacy lawsuit against the publisher of the Sun Newspaper
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Assuming News Group Newspapers takes the full time they have requested, the royal will spend four days in London away from his wife and two children, Archie, five, and Lilibet, three.
Mark Stephens, an attorney at UK-based law firm Howard Kennedy, told Newsweek: “He’s not allowed to talk to anyone about his evidence, so he won’t be able to talk to his own lawyers, he won’t be able to talk to his friends about the evidence.
“He’ll be able to talk about other things but you’re in a kind of isolation of trust. It is quite a lonely experience.”
Prince Harry previously testified to London’s High Court in 2023 during a similar privacy lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers
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Prince Harry previously testified to London’s High Court in 2023 during a similar privacy lawsuit against Mirror Group Newspapers.
He gave evidence over two days, spending one night unable to discuss the first day in court.
It is unclear if Harry’s evidence will be contained within one week or across a weekend in which he would also be barred from discussing his testimony.
The Duke of Sussex has not confirmed whether he will be physically in court or will give evidence remotely from California.
The royal did travel alone to London for his Mirror Group case.
King Charles evicted Prince Harry and Meghan Markle from their UK residence, Frogmore Cottage, in 2023.
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Stephens added: “It would be normal for him to come because the judge will want to judge his demeanour and how he is giving the evidence.”
“Although we have seen cases where witnesses from abroad have given evidence via video link.
“But it tends to be on more uncontroversial issues so I think it is unlikely that he will give video evidence via video link under these circumstances.”
It also remains unclear where Prince Harry would stay if he returned to the UK, as King Charles evicted him from his previous residence, Frogmore Cottage, in 2023.
