Mr Justice Fancourt has today handed down judgment following the recent trial in the phone hacking litigation against MGN Ltd, publishers of the Daily Mirror, Sunday Mirror and The People, and has dismissed 4 of 5 test claims as statute-barred under the Limitation Act 1980.
The trial was of the preliminary issue of whether the claimants were able to rely upon s.32 of the 1980 Act to overcome MGN’s otherwise conclusive limitation defence, on the basis that the wrongdoing was concealed (which was admitted) and that the claimants could not, with reasonable diligence, have discovered the concealment prior to 6 years before they issued their claims. The 2 claims in which this issue had been determined at the previous trial in 2023 had both been dismissed.
The parties agreed 5 test claims, which raised different factual issues. The wrongdoing alleged was assumed to have taken place for the purposes of the preliminary issue trial.
The Claimants advanced a general position that, had they consulted solicitors at the time, they would each have been advised not to issue a claim, and that this meant that time was not running under s.32. The Judge rejected this as irrelevant to the proper enquiry under s.32 of whether the claimant could with reasonable diligence have discovered sufficient facts to realise that they had a ‘worthwhile claim’, which is one that would not be struck out if pleaded.
Four of the five claimants, PR agent Murray Harkin, celebrity agent and manager Melanie Cantor, former Strictly Come Dancing dancer Camilla Sacre-Dallerup, and shoe designer Patrick Cox, were held unable to rely on s.32 due to a combination of their actual and constructive knowledge. Their claims therefore fall to be dismissed.
The Judge held that in the particular circumstances of model Paul Sculfor’s claim he was able to rely on s.32. He was causally misled by MGN’s articles into blaming certain friends and family members for disclosing his private information, heard very little about the phone hacking scandal as he was living abroad at relevant times, and had no connection with anyone who had brought a claim. He can therefore continue his claim to a full trial.
In addition to the judgment, the Court has also published a Press Summary.
5RB‘s Richard Munden, instructed by RPC and led by Lord Wolfson KC, acts for MGN Ltd.