Senior figures at the newspaper group have described the outcome as vindication of their decision to contest the claims in court
Prince Harry and six fellow claimants sought to negotiate a settlement with Associated Newspapers through unofficial channels in the weeks preceding their High Court privacy trial, it has emerged.
Representatives acting for the Duke of Sussex and his co-litigants enlisted a retired senior police detective as a go-between to approach the publisher before Harry was due to testify.
The group, which included Baroness Lawrence of Clarendon, Sir Elton John, Liz Hurley, Sadie Frost and former Liberal Democrat MP Sir Simon Hughes, made their initial approach last December.
Associated Newspapers, which publishes the Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday, flatly refused to entertain the settlement discussions, according to The Times.
The claimants now face potential legal costs of up to £50 million following Tuesday's comprehensive defeat.
One potential outcome under consideration was that both parties might simply walk away from the litigation, each bearing their own costs.
Associated's refusal to engage brought the back-channel negotiations to an abrupt end, and the nearly three-month trial proceeded as scheduled.
Mr Justice Nicklin delivered his verdict on Tuesday in a ruling spanning more than 400 pages, finding that the claimants had failed to demonstrate any wrongdoing by the newspapers' journalists.
The celebrities had alleged they were subjected to phone hacking, bugging and "blagging" by journalists and private investigators acting for Associated.
Nicklin rejected this reasoning, ruling: "In substance, the claimants' case invites the court to conclude that, because the information was private and because Associated cannot positively explain how it was sourced, the article must have been unlawfully sourced. That is not a permissible approach."
Senior figures at the publisher have described the outcome as vindication of their decision to contest the claims in court.
Paul Dacre, who edited the Daily Mail from 1992 to 2018, hailed the judgment as "not just a victory for Associated's magnificent journalists several of whom have had a terrible toll imposed on their health and lives but a free press generally".
The claimants face potential costs reaching £50 million following the comprehensive dismissal of their case.
Harry and Baroness Lawrence, a Labour peer, responded with a joint statement condemning the ruling as "a complete and obvious whitewash".
Had the December settlement approach succeeded, it would have spared Harry from giving evidence in the High Court.
