News Corp. will face three phone hacking-related legal battles in the U.S., according to hacking victims lawyer Mark Lewis.
The pending lawsuits represent the first of their kind in the U.S. The phone hacking scandal, which exploded open in the summer of 2011 and closed the 168-year-old tabloid News of the World , was predominately confined to News Corp.'s British subsidiary, News International. Over time, individuals in the U.S. including celebrities and families of 9/11 victims worried that their phones had been hacked.
Lewis, who represents the family of the late Milly Dowler and more hacking victims, told The Daily Beast that all three cases center around high-profile people. Lewis said that one case "was connected to the royal household and to Princess Diana...another case was connected to England's national football team," and the third case was connected to Hollywood. He noted that the hacking was not solely targeted to the high-profile person. "It’s not just the people who were A-list or celebrities, but people who were in their circles," he told The Daily Beast.
Lewis spoke of the significance of the first hacking-related U.S. lawsuits. "This goes to the heartland of News Corporation and we'll be looking at the involvement of the parent company in terms of claims there and that is something that will be taken more seriously by perhaps the investors and shareholders in News Corporation," he said to the BBC.
News Corp. has settled more than 60 hacking-related claims but still face more. Following a parliamentary investigation into News International and the phone hacking scandal, an official inquiry into press ethics was launched to examine the relationship between the tabloid press, British authorities, and ethics. News Corp. chief Rupert Murdoch and his son James, who heads News International, are expected to appear before the inquiry later this month.
View a timeline of the phone hacking scandal below:
Phone Hacking/Bribery Scandal Timeline
Phone Hacking/Bribery Scandal Timeline(01 of60)
March 2002: Days after the disappearance of 13-year old Milly Dowler, British tabloid News of the World began intercepting Dowler's voicemail messages.
April 2002(02 of60)
Police first became aware that the paper was listening to Dowler's messages after it reported that an employment agency had called Dowler about a job vacancy, but didn't take action "partly because their main focus was to find the missing schoolgirl and partly because this was only one example of tabloid misbehaviour," according to the Guardian.
November 2005(03 of60)
A News of the World item about his knee injury lead Prince William to believe that his aides' voicemail messages were being listened to by a third party. Three royal aides also noticed that new voicemails were showing up as old. Months later, the New York Times reported, News of the World editor Clive Goodman wrote a piece about Prince Harry's visit to a strip club that quoted a voice mail message from his brother William word-for-word.
January 2007(04 of60)
Goodman (right) and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire (left) received jail time for intercepting hundreds of voicemail messages meant for royal aides. The pair accessed the voice mailboxes of three aides 609 times, according to BBC News. An earlier search of Mulcaire's home turned up "dozens of notebooks and two computers containing 2,978 complete or partial mobile phone numbers and 91 PIN codes; at least three names of other News of the World journalists; and 30 tape recordings made by Mulcaire," reports the Times, but the pair were only charged for hacking the royal aides.
July 2009(05 of60)
New allegations from the Guardian that NoW paid £1m to suppress evidence of phone hacking prompted Parliament to hold new hearings two years after News International exec Les Hinton (bottom left next to Murdoch) first testified that Goodman was the only person at NoW who knew about the hacking. At the new hearing, Coulson (top left) maintained that he was unaware of phone hacking during his time at NoW.
September 2010(06 of60)
A New York Times piece alleged that phone hacking was pervasive at NoW and Coulson was aware of conversations about the practice, despite denying any knowledge about it. According to the Times: "'Everyone knew,' one longtime reporter said. 'The office cat knew,'" and reporters "described a frantic, sometimes degrading atmosphere in which some reporters openly pursued hacking or other improper tactics to satisfy demanding editors."
January 2011(07 of60)
Coulson stepped down as communications chief, blaming media speculation that he knew about phone hacking during his tenure of NoW. News editor Ian Edmondson was fired after allegations of phone hacking, and new information prompted police to re-open the investigation on NoW.
April 2011(08 of60)
The News of the World admitted its role in phone hacking in a public apology on its website and paper. Former editor Edmondson and reporters James Weatherup and Neville Thurlbeck were arrested on charges of intercepting voicemail messages.
June 2011(09 of60)
Levi Bellfield was found guilty of murdering Milly Dowler, but a second charge that he had attempted to abduct another schoolgirl was abandoned after tabloid publicity made it impossible for the jury to reach a fair verdict. News of the World paid Sienna Miller £100,000 in damages after publishing 11 articles that used private information from her messages in 2005 and 2006, according to the Guardian.
July 2011(10 of60)
Police notified Milly Dowler's family that NoW intercepted and deleted the young woman's voice mail messages, destroying possible evidence in the search for her killer. New evidence also shows that NoW targeted families of London's 7/7 bombings.
July 8, 2011(11 of60)
Andy Coulson, former communications chief to David Cameron and ex-editor of News of the World, was arrested in the investigation on phone hacking at NoW.
July 10, 2011(12 of60)
The News of the World released its final issue after James Murdoch, head of parent company News Corp's operations in Europe, made the decision to shutter the paper. The move was expected to "take some of the heat off immediate allegations about journalistic behavior and phone hacking."
July 11, 2011(13 of60)
Multiple newsoutlets reported that the Sun and the Sunday Times, also owned by parent company News International, had been hacking the voice mail box and other records of former Prime Minister Gordon Brown for years. The Sunday Times allegedly posed as Brown to obtain his financial records, and the Sun allegedly received details about Brown's son's cystic fibrosis. The revelations mark the first time allegations have targeted News International's other papers.
July 11, 2011(14 of60)
News Corp referred its bid to take over satellite broadcaster BSkyB to the Competition Commission, which will delay the deal by at least six months as the company awaits regulatory clearance. British leaders have called for Murdoch to drop the bid, with Labor Party leader Ed Millibrand calling the deal "untenable" and Liberal Democrat Nick Clegg calling on News Corp to "do the decent and sensible thing."
July 13, 2011(15 of60)
Rupert Murdoch withdrew its $12 billion bid for BSkyB, the largest pay-TV broadcaster in Britain, after the British government withdrew its support the day before. The deal, which would have substantially increased Murdoch's foothold in the British media, appeared like it would sail through until last week. News Corp, which began to seek full ownership of BSkyB in March 2011, will keep its 39% stake in the company.
July 14, 2011(16 of60)
The FBI launched a probe into allegations that News Corp. attempted to hack the phones of September 11 victims after Representative Peter King and other members of Congress wrote to FBI Director Robert Mueller demanding an investigation. Murdoch also agreed give evidence before a parliamentary committee. He had previously said that he was not available to attend the hearing, but relented after receiving a personal summons delivered to him and his son by a deputy sergeant-at-arms.
July 15, 2011(17 of60)
Les Hinton announced his resignation as Dow Jones CEO, and Rebekah Brooks stepped down as chief executive of News International. Brooks presided over the News of the World during the phone hacking of murder victim Milly Dowler, and is scheduled to appear before a parliamentary committee next week. Murdoch also met with Dowler's family to apologize.
July 17, 2011(18 of60)
Brooks was arrested in connection with the scandal, throwing her scheduled appearance before Parliament on Tuesday into serious doubt. In addition, Sir Paul Stephenson, the head of Scotland Yard, resigned his position, becoming the highest-profile public official yet to lose his job because of the scandal. (The Met has itself been plunged into crisis for its lax handling of the scandal and for the corrupt ties police officers developed to News International.) (credit:Getty)
July 18, 2011(19 of60)
John Yates, assistant commissioner of the British Metropolitan Police, stepped down after the resignation of chief Paul Stephenson the previous night. The scandal has focused on British police for failing to investigate evidence of News of the World's phone hacking activities and for accepting bribes for information from tabloid writers. Yates decided not to reopen the investigation two years ago, saying he did not believe there was new evidence to consider. (credit:Getty)
July 19, 2011(20 of60)
Rupert Murdoch, son James and former News of the World editor Rebekah Brooks testified in front of a parliamentary committee. All three insisted that they were not aware of phone hacking activities at the tabloid. Rupert Murdoch also made clear that he would not resign. Someone attempted to pie Murdoch in the face with shaving cream. (credit:AP)
July 21, 2011(21 of60)
A former editor and a top lawyer for the News of the World accused Murdoch of lying in his testimony that he had no knowledge of phone hacking at the tabloid. The two recall showing him an email between private investigation Glenn Mulcaire and then-reporter Neville Thurlbeck with transcripts of hacked voice messages. The investigation also threatened to spread to other newspapers that were named for using a private investigator to illegally obtain information. (credit:Flickr:Ben Sutherland)
July 28, 2011(22 of60)
The Guardian reported that the News of the World hacked the phone of Sara Payne, the mother of an 8 year old girl who was abducted and killed by a pedophile. The 2000 murder had prompted Rebekah Brooks to launch a campaign for a sex offender's law in Britain now known as "Sarah's Law." The phone that the tabloid hacked may have been one that Brooks personally gave to Payne in the aftermath of the tragedy, which Payne had praised as for helping her "stay in touch with my family, friends and support network."
August 16, 2011(23 of60)
Clive Goodman, a former News of the World reporter, has alleged that there was a massive coverup of phone hacking at the tabloid. He was arrested for phone hacking in 2007, and now claims that former editor Andy Coulson offered to let him keep his job in exchange for saying that he was the only person at the tabloid who hacked phones. The allegations are deeply damaging to Coulson and Rupert and James Murdoch, who have all maintained that they knew nothing about phone hacking. (credit:Getty)
August 18, 2011(24 of60)
Glenn Mulcaire, the private investigator hired by the News of the World to intercept voicemails, sued News Corp. over the payment of his legal fees. The company had been paying his fees since 2007 when he was found guilty of hacking the phones of aides to the royal family, but recently terminated the arrangement after Rupert and James Murdoch's testimonies in Parliament. Mulcaire himself is the target of dozens of civil lawsuits filed by suspected victims of phone hacking.
August 19, 2011(25 of60)
Glenn Mulcaire has been ordered to release the names of people who ordered him to hack the phones of six public figures. He is due to make the disclosure by the end of next week, as part of actor Steve Coogan's lawsuit against News Group. The revelations threaten to blow the defense presented by News of the World editors, who claim they knew nothing about phone hacking. (credit:AP)
August 22, 2011(26 of60)
News breaks that the News of the World hacked even more of Milly Dowler's voicemails than previously assumed.
August 26, 2011(27 of60)
News International is continuing to pay Glenn Mulcaire's legal fees, despite the company's insistence that it would stop. The previous month, the private investigator had released the names of people who ordered him to hack phones, but the names were kept confidential. (credit:AP)
September 13, 2011(28 of60)
News International announces the discovery of thousands of new documents related to phone hacking. (credit:Getty)
September 19, 2011(29 of60)
Milly Dowler's family is slated to receive £3 million in a settlement with News Corp. (credit:Getty)
September 30, 2011(30 of60)
Neville Thurlbeck, a former News of the World reporter, insists that he is innocent and was unfairly dismissed. His account contrasts News Corp.'s defense, which places Thurlbeck as the single rogue reporter responsible for phone hacking at the News of the World.
October 5, 2011(31 of60)
News International faces a lawsuit from the parent of a 7/7 London bombing victim, among at least 60 other lawsuits. (credit:Getty)
October 19, 2011(32 of60)
Yet another lawyer has accused News International of misleading Parliament over its knowledge of phone hacking. Julian Pike, a partner of the firm that used to represent the company, said that he saw evidence that there were more journalists involved in phone hacking in 2008. His testimony came after the company signed with a new law firm and Pike was no longer bound by client-attorney privilege.
October 21, 2011(33 of60)
Rupert Murdoch faced angry shareholders at News Corp.'s annual meeting. Shareholder after shareholder vented frustration with the company, and Murdoch struggled to remain calm, losing his temper at one point. (credit:AP)
October 24, 2011(34 of60)
James Murdoch has been called back to testify in front of Parliament for the second time on November 10. His testimony will focus on discrepancies in his account, given witnesses who have said that he signed off on phone hacking payouts to Gordon Taylor. (credit:AP)
October 24, 2011(35 of60)
Les Hinton, the former CEO of Dow Jones, testified about phone hacking in front of Parliament. The former publisher of the Wall Street Journal, who had previously testified on phone hacking in 2007 and 2009, denied that he misled Parliament in his past testimonies. He resigned in the summer, and was the most senior executive claimed by the scandal. (credit:AP)
October 25, 2011(36 of60)
James, Lachlan and Rupert Murdoch were all re-elected to the board of News Corp. despite huge shareholder opposition to their leadership. Their tenure was never in doubt, due to the company's shareholder structure, but the majority of shareholders voted against James and Lachlan. (credit:AP)
November 1, 2011(37 of60)
A series of internal News International memos could be damning for James Murdoch, who is set to testify in front of Parliament for the second time next week. One of the documents was prepared for a meeting between James Murdoch and Colin Myler, the former editor who challenged his account of events, and specifically discusses the hacked voice mails. The notes of Julian Pike, then-lawyer for the company, also contain incriminating phrases like "paying them off." (credit:Getty)
November 10, 2011(38 of60)
James Murdoch testified on phone hacking in Parliament for a second time. The younger Murdoch faced new evidence that he may have been aware of phone hacking at the time of his company's settlement with footballer Gordon Taylor. He maintained his innocence, claiming that he was aware that Taylor had been hacked, but that he was unaware the News of the World had targeted others.
November 11, 2011(39 of60)
Former News of the World reporter Neville Thurlbeck speaks out against News International. He said that he had been trying to warn the company about phone hacking for the past two years -- during which time he said he also collected evidence of the illicit crime at the tabloid. Police seized those materials the same week. Thurlbeck, who had been arrested for phone hacking, continued to maintain his innocence.
November 29, 2011(40 of60)
Former News of the World features editor Paul McMullan gave an explosive and freewheeling testimony about the extent of phone hacking at the British tabloid. He appeared to admit engaging in the criminal activity himself, implicated Rebekah Brooks and Andy Coulson, and hinted that Piers Morgan had a hand in establishing the cutthroat culture where phone hacking eventually became commonplace. Among the crazier things he said were that he loved celebrity car chases before Princess Diana's death, and that "privacy is for paedos" (pedophiles).
December 7, 2011(41 of60)
Glenn Mulcaire was arrested.
December 8, 2011(42 of60)
New emails between James Murdoch, Colin Myler and Tom Crone could be damaging for Murdoch's defense. Murdoch reveals that Myler emailed him in 2008, asking for a meeting about the Gordon Taylor affair. Also attached to the message was a series of emails between Myler and Tom Crone, which referenced phone hacking and Glenn Mulcaire. (credit:Getty)
December 20, 2011(43 of60)
Piers Morgan testified on phone hacking to the Leveson inquiry. He maintained that he had never hacked a phone or ordered anyone to do so. His testimony grew a bit heated after he refused to describe the circumstances under which he had heard one of Paul McCartney's voicemails to Heather Mills. (credit:Getty)
January 19, 2012(44 of60)
Jude Law was one of 37 victims of phone hacking who received cash payouts from News Corp. It was the largest group of settlements announced in the scandal thus far. Fifteen of the deals amounted to about $1 million. Law was one of sixty people who sued the company alleging that their phones had been hacked. (credit:Getty)
January 31, 2012(45 of60)
The Financial Times reported that the launch of News International's forthcoming publication -- a Sunday version of The Sun -- was pushed back due to arrests at another one of the company's properties. Rupert Murdoch denied the report on Twitter. Four journalists at the Sun were arrested on charges of bribing the police. (credit:Getty)
February 11, 2012(46 of60)
Hell is breaking loose for Rupert Murdoch's empire again -- this time, for illegal payments from journalists to members of the police. Five employees at the Sun, and three civil servants were arrested on Saturday. Sources said that Murdoch plans to continue to publish the paper, and that he will be traveling to London to meet with staff members. The trip had been reportedly planned before the arrests occurred. (credit:Getty)
February 13, 2012(47 of60)
Picture shows an arrangement of copies of The Sun newspaper front pages on February 13, 2012. Rupert Murdoch's British tabloid The Sun condemned police raids against its journalists as a 'witch-hunt' worthy of former communist states, and won rare support from rival newspapers. AFP PHOTO / LEON NEAL (Photo credit should read LEON NEAL/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
February 17, 2012(48 of60)
News Corporation Chief Rupert Murdoch leaves his London home, on February 17, 2012. Rupert Murdoch said on February 17 he will launch a Sunday version of his top-selling British tabloid The Sun 'very soon', as he sought to boost morale among staff left angry and hurt by a wave of arrests. AFP PHOTO / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
February 26, 2012(49 of60)
News Corporation Chief Rupert Murdoch holds up a copy of the newly launched 'The Sun on Sunday' newspaper as he leaves his London home on February 26, 2012. Rupert Murdoch's Sun on Sunday tabloid hit news stands on Sunday, replacing the defunct News of the World with a pledge to meet high ethical standards after a 'challenging' chapter in its history. AFP PHOTO/CARL COURT (Photo credit should read CARL COURT/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
February 28, 2012(50 of60)
British police gave former News of the World editor Rebekah Brooks a retired police horse to look after, it was confirmed on Feb. 28. The Metropolitan Police insisted it was not a gift horse. They said it was loaned to Brooks under a program that allows people to care for retired service animals. (credit:Getty)
February 29, 2012(51 of60)
James Murdoch steps down as the executive chairman of News International. He weathered speculation that he would resign for months since News Corp.'s phone hacking scandal broke in July 2011. He is resigning amidst continued allegations of phone hacking, and new explosive charges of bribery at the Sun. (credit:Getty)
March 13, 2012(52 of60)
Rebekah Brooks, former chief executive of News International, and her husband Charlie were arrested along with four other people. The arrests were made on "suspicion of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice." (credit:Getty)
March 14, 2012(53 of60)
James Murdoch expressed 'great and real regret' over phone hacking in a new letter to Parliament. (credit:Getty)
April 24, 2012(54 of60)
Former News International chairman James Murdoch adjusts his tie as he arrives at the High Court to give evidence to The Leveson Inquiry on April 24, 2012 in London, England. This phase of the inquiry into the culture, practice and ethics of the press in the United Kingdom is looking at the owners of various media groups. Rupert Murdoch, owner of News Corp, will give evidence tomorrow. (Photo by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images) (credit:Getty)
April 26, 2012(55 of60)
News Corp Chief Rupert Murdoch (L) and wife Wendi Deng (R) are driven away from the High Court in central London on April 26, 2012 after Rupert Murdoch's second and final day of giving evidence at the Leveson Inquiry. Rupert Murdoch admitted on April 26 there was a 'cover-up' over phone hacking at Britain's News of the World tabloid but tried to shift the blame away from himself and senior executives at his media empire. AFP PHOTO / JUSTIN TALLIS (Photo credit should read JUSTIN TALLIS/AFP/GettyImages) (credit:Getty)
May 1, 2012 (56 of60)
The parliamentary committee investigating press ethics delivered its major report on phone hacking, declaring Rupert Murdoch "not a fit person" to run a major company like News Corp. The committee issued the verdict based on Murdoch's handling of the phone hacking scandal, alleging that the CEO "turned a blind eye and exhibited willful blindness to what was going on in his companies and publications." (credit:Getty)
May 15, 2012(57 of60)
It was announced that Rebekah Brooks will face criminal charges over phone hacking. The Crown Prosecution Service said that Brooks "conspired with her husband, Charles Brooks, and others to pervert the course of justice." She was charged along with five others. (credit:John Stillwell/PA Wire)
May 30, 2012 (58 of60)
Andy Coulson, former communications director for Prime Minister Cameron, was arrested and charged with perjury in a trial involving the News of the World. (credit:AP)
May 31, 2012(59 of60)
British Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt testified to the Leveson Inquiry. Hunt, who was tasked with making a decision on Rupert Murdoch's bid for BSkyB, came under pressure to resign after new evidence of his close ties to Murdoch surfaced. News Corp.'s lobbyist sent hundreds of texts, emails and calls to Hunt's office about the bid, and Hunt also sent texts to James Murdoch indicating his support for the takeover. (credit:AP)
June 28, 2012(60 of60)
Under pressure to limit contagion from the British phone hacking scandal, Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. announced it is splitting into two publicly traded companies. The Wall Street Journal, News Corp.'s flagship newspaper, reported late Monday that the company is considering the separation of the newspaper and book publishing businesses from the entertainment arm, which includes Fox News Channel, broadcast TV network and 20th Century Fox movie studio. The media conglomerate did not specify Tuesday which businesses each company would contain. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) (credit:AP)
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