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Mr Brown was sacked in 2006 after an investigation claimed to have found that he had put his byline on unused stories he had bought from a Daily Mirror colleague. That brings an end to David Sherborne's questioning of the witness.īack to the courtroom now, and David Sherborne is asking witness Marcus Partington, former MGN lawyer, about an employment claim brought by former People journalist David Brown against the publisher. 'That's not correct,' Mr Partington responds. Mr Sherborne puts to the former lawyer that he 'deliberately deleted emails' to 'conceal his knowledge of unlawful information gathering before 2004, and in fact since 2000'. Mr Partington reiterates that he does not remember what happened with the deletion of his email inbox. 'You're well aware of the significance of that period because 2004 is the first date you say you became aware of unlawful information gathering.' 'Mr Partington I have to put it to you that this period is a highly significant one,' Mr Sherborne says. He suggests to ex-MGN lawyer Marcus Partington that he 'deleted almost all emails' from 2000 to 2004 - to which the witness replies that he has no recollection of doing so. The claimants' lawyer David Sherborne alleged in his outline argument that MGN 'deleted or destroyed masses of documents, including emails' related to the period in which alleged unlawful activity is claimed to have taken place at its titles.

The former lawyer denied that he deleted emails spanning part of the period the claims cover to 'conceal his knowledge of unlawful intelligence gathering'.

Probed on a previous comment he made about a former People journalist being 'London's best criminal', Mr Partington denied its was related to phone hacking, and was instead about a tobacco import sting.

Mr Partington told the court that infringing on a person's privacy was 'a matter for editors' and the legal team did not need to know the source of a story to give advice.

He denied a suggestion by Prince Harry's lawyer David Sherborne that a letter he wrote to police following a journalist's arrest in 1999 was 'misleading'.

Ex-MGN lawyer Marcus Partington, the sole witness for today, was probed on his knowledge of alleged unlawful activity at MGN titles.

They initially appear to opt for 'your grace' followed by 'sir' - before agreeing to settle on a final decision before he begins his testimony.īefore we leave you today, here's a quick recap of what we've heard today: There's a brief moment before we exit the court as legal counsel discuss with the judge how the royal should be addressed in court.

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Court is not due to sit next week, and will return in June, when Prince Harry is expected to give evidence in his civil trial against Mirror Group Newspapers.