Good news from the court for Prince Harry who sued the Daily Mail!

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Prince Harry won his first victory against the Daily Mail newspaper, which accused him of hiring private detectives to bug other people's homes and cars, fraudulently obtaining medical and financial information and intercepting phone calls.

Prince Harry and other plaintiffs, who won the right to continue their legal battle against the publisher of the Daily Mail, accused the newspaper of illegally collecting or instructing the collection of information, which Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL) "emphatically" denied.

Yesterday, however, the court rejected Associated Newspapers' application to dismiss the claims, which were also made by musician Elton John, actress Elizabeth Hurley and Baroness Doreen Lawrence.

The newspaper had argued that the allegations occurred more than six years before the claim was made, meaning that the statute of limitations had expired. However, the court found that the publisher, Associated Newspapers, had failed to rebut any of the allegations and ruled that the case could proceed to trial.

The allegations include hiring private investigators to bug other people's homes and cars, fraudulently obtaining medical and financial information, and accessing and intercepting phone calls.

The seven plaintiffs, including Prince Harry, said in a statement after the verdict that they were "delighted" with the verdict, adding, "We intend to uncover the truth at trial and hold those responsible at Associated Newspapers fully to account."

Speaking to The Independent about the financial implications of taking the case to court, Philippa Dempster, a lawyer specializing in privacy, said: "In phone hacking claims dating back to 2015, the highest damages on record are at least £200,000 (around £7 million). Given that there are seven claimants in the current cases, the damages alone could amount to around £1.5 million (around £52 million)."

Dempster also said, "If the case goes to court, the costs to both sides are likely to exceed this amount. Therefore, if the claims are upheld, Associated Newspapers' final bill for damages and costs could easily be in the region of £4-5 million (around £140-175 million)."

Prince Harry brought separate cases in the High Court against Mirror Group Newspapers and the parent company of The Sun and Rupert Murdoch's defunct News Group Newspapers.

Mirror Group, whose parent company is now known as Reach, has already paid £1.2 million in compensation to eight celebrities after a 2015 trial found phone hacking had taken place. The company has since settled hundreds of civil claims for compensation.