Prince Harry in London on judgment day in his legal battle against the Daily Mail

LONDON, July 7 - Prince Harry, the estranged younger son of King Charles, will be in London without his wife and family when he hears later on Tuesday whether he has won a hugely expensive court case against the publisher of the Daily Mail.

Harry, who visits Britain once or twice a year, arrived on Monday evening for five days of engagements. It got off to a bad start when he decided not to bring his young children at the last minute over security concerns and was then told he could not stay at Buckingham Palace.

The ruling in the high-profile privacy case is the last outstanding court battle for Harry, who has long railed against the British press, accusing them of abusing their power.

ROYAL FAMILY RIFT

Harry, 41, has lived in California since 2020 with his American wife Meghan after he quit as a working royal, exposing a deep rift in the family, which he has since said he wanted to repair.

There was intense media speculation that his two children, Archie, 7, and Lilibet, 5, might see their grandfather King Charles for the first time in four years on this trip, providing a basis for that reconciliation.

But a row over police protection for the family and the withdrawal of an invitation to stay at Buckingham Palace have dashed hopes of building bridges, and Harry has travelled to London alone.

Harry's pursuit of the media in the courts is another issue which has put him at odds with his family.

The judgment in the case against Associated Newspapers, publisher of the Daily Mail, is expected to be handed down at 1300 GMT.

The case was brought by Harry, Elton John and five other high-profile British figures, and Harry appeared as a witness on the stand earlier this year.

The stakes for both sides in the case are high. The legal teams estimate the costs of the case will run into tens of millions of pounds, a tab which the losing side will mainly have to pay, while, should the claimants win, they could also expect substantial damages.

There is also the question of what defeat would mean to the reputations of Harry and the other well-known claimants, or to the titles — among the most widely read in the English-speaking world — and their senior editors and journalists. REUTERS