The actor followed in the footsteps of Paul Gascoigne and Sienna Miller in a so-called “Sun-only” phone hack, claiming that illegal tabloids were illegal in the 2000s. was a Sun editor at the time. Murdoch’s News in the UK has already paid millions of pounds to settle claims by people like Miller and Gascoigne over the alleged activities of Sun journalists, ensuring that the allegations will not be heard in court. “I suspect there is some degree of damage reduction,” said Nathan Sparkes, chief executive of Hacked Off, which is campaigning for tighter press coverage. “In the case of Sun, it is very likely that they are trying to avoid a complete court case in which many other details could arise, which they do not want to be disclosed.” More such cases are expected in the future, causing a growing headache for Murdoch’s business as it tries to move beyond the age of phone hacking and instead focus on the imminent launch of Piers Morgan’s news channel, talkTV. Morgan himself faces constant accusations – which he vehemently denies – that he should have known about the practice when he was the publisher of the Daily Mirror in the 2000s. Hugh Grant’s case is inconvenient for News UK because the company has always said that its illegal activity took place exclusively in News of the World, the Sunday agency that closed in 2011 after 168 years. This has left the Sun in the unusual position of claiming that it does not hack phones, while at the same time choosing to pay huge sums in damages and legal fees – although without any admission of guilt – to people who claim otherwise. The continuing cost of legal action has hit Sun’s value as a business and caused it huge financial losses. The company recently failed in an attempt to close the ongoing legal process that makes it relatively easy for alleged victims of telephone piracy to file claims. With thousands more potential victims waiting in the wings, the hacking lawsuit could now span a third of a decade – possibly adding to the hundreds of millions of pounds already paid by Murdoch’s company. Prime Minister Zac Goldsmith, his mother Lady Annabel Goldsmith, football director Alan Pardew, former cabinet minister Chris Huhne and Spice Girl are among those who have filed new phone hacking allegations against the company in recent weeks. Mel B. Atomic Kitten’s Liz McClarnon, actors Gillian Anderson and Kate Winslet, boxer Joe Calzaghe and Steps singer Lisa Scott-Lee. Grant, who filed a phone hacking case against News of the World in 2012, is unusual as one of a relatively small group of people who can make a separate claim specifically against the Sun. In a complicated legal settlement, the still-published Sun and the late News of the World belong to the same parent company, which means that it can settle cases against the latter provided that the victims can not file a separate claim against it. first. But those who secured some of the first phone piracy arrangements in the early 2010s – such as Grant – were not asked to agree to such terms. This allows them to file a second lawsuit against Sun. Reach, the current owner of the Daily Mirror, also faces long-standing and ongoing legal claims for historic phone-breaking offenses in its tabloid newspapers. Prince Harry also has a case in court alleging offenses against the Sun, the News of the World and the publisher of the Mirror. Sparkes, whose organization is pushing for a public inquiry into the relationship between the media and the police, said: “The background of hacking is not only the practice itself, but also the cover-up and culture that allowed it to happen. . “It may have happened a long time ago, but there is no evidence that the culture has changed radically.” News UK has been approached for comment.