Mirror Group Newspapers (MGN) has lost its appeal over record damages paid out to eight phone-hacking victims.
MGN said the compensation, totalling £1.2 million, was “out of all proportion” to the gravity of the harm done.
Mr Justice Mann’s ruling in May was on the basis of the invasions of privacy concerned being “so serious and so prolonged”.
Today, Lady Justice Arden, Lady Justice Rafferty and Lord Justice Kitchin in the Court of Appeal paid tribute to Mr Justice Mann’s judgment and rejected each ground of appeal.
MGN was refused permission to appeal to the Supreme Court.
All the awards exceeded the previous highest sum given by a UK court in a privacy case – the £60,000 won by former Formula 1 boss Max Mosley who successfully sued the now defunct News of the World in 2008 – and are expected to provide a framework for resolving similar civil actions in the pipeline.
Actress and businesswoman Sadie Frost received the largest sum of £260,250, with ex-England footballer Paul Gascoigne getting £188,250.
TV executive Alan Yentob was awarded £85,000, sums of £117,500 and £157,250 respectively were awarded to actresses Shobna Gulati and Lucy Taggart, and £155,000 went to soap star Shane Richie.
TV producer Robert Ashworth, who was married to actress Tracy Shaw, received £201,250, and flight attendant Lauren Alcorn, who had a relationship with footballer Rio Ferdinand, was awarded £72,500.
Owner Trinity Mirror has said MGN accepted it should pay appropriate compensation but believed the basis used for calculating the damages was incorrect and the awards were excessive.
Its QC Lord Pannick said: “The sums awarded in this case are out of all proportion to the gravity of the harm done, the damage caused, when consideration is given – as we say it must be – to the established scale of damages for personal injuries.”
Distressing though the experience was, none of the claimants suffered loss comparable to that caused by severe psychiatric damage or post-traumatic stress disorder – far less very serious physical injuries.
But David Sherborne, for the claimants, said: “The criticisms which are levelled at the judgment by MGN are either misplaced, not being borne out by a fair and proper reading of it, or are just wrong as a matter of law.”