News Corp. To Pay Hacking Damages

LONDON — Rupert Murdoch’s British newspaper company on Thursday agreed to pay damages to 36 high-profile victims of tabloid phone-hacking, including actor Jude Law, soccer player Ashley Cole and former British Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott.

They are among dozens of people who were suing News Group Newspapers after their mobile phone voicemails were allegedly hacked by the now-shuttered News of the World tabloid. Other cases settled include those of former government ministers Chris Bryant and Tessa Jowell, ex-model Abi Titmuss and Sara Payne, mother of a murdered girl.

In all, Murdoch’s company was facing 60 hacking lawsuits, though the number of victims is estimated to be in the hundreds. The settlements were made public at a court hearing in London on Thursday, although financial details were not disclosed.

Mark Lewis, a lawyer for many of the phone hacking victims, said in an email that the fight against Murdoch’s empire was not over.

“While congratulations are due to those (lawyers) and clients who have settled their cases, it is important that we don’t get carried away into thinking that the war is over,” Lewis said. “Fewer than 1 percent of the people who were hacked have settled their cases. There are many more cases in the pipeline. … This is too early to celebrate, we’re not even at the end of the beginning.”

Actress Sienna Miller had reached an earlier settlement with the company.