On June 23, 2020, the Court of Appeal in London ruled that actor Hugh Grant’s lawsuit accusing The Sun tabloid newspaper of illegally snooping on his private life can go to trial.
Grant had claimed that The Sun accessed the contents of his voicemail messages and hacked into his email and social media accounts without his authorization. He launched a legal action against the paper in 2018, but the High Court refused to allow the case to proceed, ruling that it had been filed too late.
The Court of Appeal reversed this decision, ruling that part of the case can go to trial to determine whether The Sun or its parent company, News Group Newspapers, is accountable for the alleged activities. The court also stated that Grant has a valid claim for breach of confidence and misuse of private information against the paper, provided that he can prove that The Sun obtained personal information about him by breaching his confidential relationship with another party.
Although the ruling represents a victory for Grant, the case will still need to be examined by a judge at a full trial. Until then, Grant’s allegations against The Sun remain unproven.