King Charles visited the High Court one day before Harry’s Mirror case judgment

As we discussed recently, the fix is in regarding Prince Harry’s lawsuits over royal protection when he’s in the UK. Harry is suing the government over his right to have and pay for police protection, and he’s also suing the Mail over their really grotesque coverage of the protection issue. Harry is going to lose his battle against the Home Office – even if he scores some small victory (which is unlikely), they still won’t give him protection, nor would they ever let him pay for it. Meanwhile, Harry is also the plaintiff in what feels like a dozen other lawsuits against British media outlets. Today, a judge handed down a ruling on Harry’s lawsuit against the Mirror. So, obviously, Harry’s father had to make a big, splashy visit to the High Court on Thursday, just to make it clear that the fix is absolutely in.

As royal visits go, the High Court has become more used to the sight of the Duke of Sussex than his father, the King. But on Thursday, less than 24 hours before Mr Justice Fancourt was due to hand down his ruling on Prince Harry’s claim against Mirror Group Newspapers, it was His Majesty’s turn to pay a first visit to the Royal Courts of Justice.

Rather than suing newspapers, though, the King was at the court to celebrate the relationship between the judiciary and the Crown, observing that the British justice system was the envy of the world. He also hailed the work of voluntary magistrates, asking: “What would we do without you?”

As he unveiled a plaque marking his visit, he said: “Thank you all enormously for the amount of effort you put into maintaining the system of justice that so many others seem to be envious of, I’ve discovered going around the world. So I cannot thank you enough, particularly the magistrates, the extraordinary work they do, somehow putting in these onerous duties on top of everything else – it is truly remarkable, and a wonderful system. I hope you get a moment or two before you have to rush back and administer justice. And finally, can I just wish you a very happy and I hope relatively peaceful Christmas and I hope you get a moment or two before you have to rush back and administer justice on our behalf.”

[From The Telegraph]

Real question: IS the British legal system the envy of the world? I understand that the American legal system used British law as a template, and many other nations have done so as well. I get the historical significance of that, and maybe a more accurate statement would be: “British law has influenced countless countries, democracies and republics.” But in the year of our lord Beyonce 2023, does anyone really believe that Britain’s system of justice is “the envy of the world”? As I’ve tried to make sense of Britain’s libel and defamation laws, I’m left bewildered by how the powerful press barons have rigged the system to their favor, largely to avoid accountability. This visit was also Exhibit Q of “should the king be cozying up to judges when his son is suing everybody?” It’s not about criminality, it’s about the appearance of criminality. The law should be above reproach, certainly. Except when judges want to hang out with the king and do him special favors.

Watch:

King Charles arrives at the High Court in London. No, he’s not in trouble but there to celebrate the ‘exceptional work” of court staff. The visit coincidentally comes 24hrs before the same court will rule on Harry’s legal case against Mirror Group Newspapers.. pic.twitter.com/FM6CsMie7Q

— Matt Wilkinson (@MattSunRoyal) December 14, 2023

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.