Prince Harry Receives 8-Figure Sum in Damages After Settling Legal Battle Against Rupert Murdoch-Owned “The Sun”

PEOPLE understands that News Group Newspapers (NGN) has agreed to pay the Duke of Sussex an eight-figure sum in his case against the publisher

• Prince Harry receives more than £10 million (over $12 million) in damages from News Group Newspapers
• NGN also issued a "full and unequivocal apology" to the Duke of Sussex
• Harry's lawyer David Sherborne called the ruling a "monumental victory"

Prince Harry has received an eight-figure sum in damages after reaching a surprise settlement in his legal battle against the publisher of U.K. newspaper The Sun.

PEOPLE understands that the settlement involved an eight-figure sum, likely exceeding $12 million, covering both legal costs and damages in his case against the publisher over accusations of illegal information gathering by journalists and private investigators.

In a statement obtained by PEOPLE following the Jan. 22 settlement, which came after both sides reached an agreement before the trial in London officially began, NGN said they offer "a full and unequivocal apology" to Harry and confirmed they had agreed to pay him "substantial damages.” The settlement fell short of Harry winning an apology from named senior executives at the company and newspaper at the time of the allegations. 

Speaking outside the High Court in London on behalf of Harry and his co-claimant, former Labour Member of Parliament Tom Watson, Harry’s lawyer David Sherborne called for a police investigation into the newspaper and spoke of how Harry bringing a case against the publisher has impacted him and his family’s life.

Related: Prince Harry to Miss First Day of U.K. Trial, Dismissing Reports He Was Set to Receive Police Protection

“In a monumental victory today, News UK have admitted that The Sun, the flagship title for Rupert Murdoch’s U.K. media empire, has indeed engaged in illegal practices. This represents a vindication for the hundreds of other claimants who were strong-armed into settling, without being able to get to the truth of what was done to them,” Sherborne began.

“After endless resistance, denials and legal battles by News Group Newspapers, including spending more than a billion pounds in payouts and in legal costs (as well as paying off those in the know) to prevent the full picture from coming out, News UK is finally held to account for its illegal actions and its blatant disregard for the law,” Sherborne continued. “It has also specifically admitted wrongdoing against Tom Watson, and admitted unlawful acts by The Sun, as well as by the News of the World, against Prince Harry.”

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“The truth that has now been exposed is that NGN unlawfully engaged more than 100 private investigators over at least 16 years on more than 35,000 occasions. This happened as much at The Sun as it did at the News of the World, with the knowledge of all the editors and executives, going to the very top of the company,” Sherborne added.

Sherborne went on to share that “today’s result has been achieved only through the sheer resilience of Prince Harry and Lord Watson, whose willingness to take NGN to trial has led directly to this historic admission of unlawfulness at The Sun.” 

Related: Hugh Grant Explains Why He Is Taking 'Enormous Sum of Money' to Settle Privacy Lawsuit in U.K.

“As a direct result of him taking a stand, Prince Harry and his immediate family have also had to repeatedly withstand aggressive and vengeful coverage since starting his claim over five years ago. This has created serious concerns for the security of him and his family,” he continued. 

“The rule of law must now run its full course. Prince Harry and Tom Watson join others in calling for the police and Parliament to investigate not only the unlawful activity now finally admitted, but the perjury and cover-ups along the way,” Sherborne added. “It’s clear now this has occurred throughout this process, including through sworn evidence in inquiries and court hearings, and in testimony to Parliament, until today’s final collapse of NGN’s defense. Today the lies are laid bare. Today, the cover-ups are exposed. And today proves that no one stands above the law. The time for accountability has arrived.”

Also speaking outside court, Lord Watson praised Harry, who was present for proceedings on Tuesday, for his leadership in the case. 

“His bravery and astonishing courage has brought accountability to a part of the media world that thought it was untouchable,” he said. “I am sure I speak on behalf of the thousands of victims when I say we are grateful to him for his unwavering support and his determination under extraordinary pressure.”

Watson then called on Rupert Murdoch to “follow this corporate admission of guilt with a personal apology to Prince Harry, to his father our King and to the countless others who’ve suffered the same unlawful behavior at the hands of his media empire.”

The settlement on Jan. 22 followed a frenzied day of negotiations the previous day that delayed the start of the hearing.

Harry and Lord Watson had refused to join the hundreds of others, including Hugh Grant and Sienna Miller, who previously settled lawsuits with NGN over allegations of phone hacking and other unlawful surveillance before going to trial.

The prince had accused the publisher of illegal information gathering between 1996 and 2011, a period during which The Sun and the now-defunct News of the World allegedly targeted him. NGN had previously denied any wrongdoing.

In their statement on Tuesday, NGN said, "NGN offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the serious intrusion by The Sun between 1996 and 2011 into his private life, including incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun.”

The statement continued, “NGN also offers a full and unequivocal apology to the Duke of Sussex for the phone hacking, surveillance and misuse of private information by journalists and private investigators instructed by them at the News of the World.”

"NGN further apologizes to the Duke for the impact on him of the extensive coverage and serious intrusion into his private life as well as the private life of Diana, Princess of Wales, his late mother, in particular during his younger years," the statement added. "We acknowledge and apologize for the distress caused to the Duke, and the damage inflicted on relationships, friendships and family, and have agreed to pay him substantial damages."

NGN later responded to Sherborne's comments, clarifying, "Today, our apology to the Duke of Sussex includes an apology for incidents of unlawful activities carried out by private investigators working for The Sun, not by journalists, during the period 1996-2011."

Buckingham Palace declined to comment on the ruling.