Prince Harry can file a lawsuit against the publisher of the Daily Mail in court, the judge has ruled

Prince Harry appears to be ready for a court battle with the editor of the British newspaper The Daily Mail.

The British royal family’s claim for damages over allegations of illegal data collection can be heard in court, a High Court judge ruled on Friday.

As the BBC reports, Prince Harry is among a group of high-profile figures, including Sir Elton John, David Furnish, Sadie Frost, Liz Hurley and Sir Simon Hughes, who have taken legal action against Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL). The group accuses the publisher of several “serious violations of privacy”, such as hiring private investigators to install listening devices in cars, eavesdropping on telephone conversations and dishonestly obtaining medical and financial information.

Associated Newspapers denied all allegations. At hearings in March, lawyers argued that the claims – dating back to 1993 – were filed “much too late”, The Guardian reported. The newspaper added that David Sherborne, who represented Prince Harry and others, said Associated Newspapers’ bid to dismiss the claims was as “ambitious as it was unattractive” and that the group’s members each had a “compelling matter” has.

In a ruling today, Judge Nicklin said Associated Newspapers “failed to defeat these plaintiffs’ claims.”

Today’s ruling is likely to mean that Prince Harry will appear in court again in person, after appearing in court in June over a separate phone hacking case against Mirror Group Newspapers. This court appearance marked the first time a high-ranking royal had been questioned in court since the 19th century.