Start of Prince Harry’s Trial Against Murdoch’s U.K. Tabloids Is Delayed

The long-awaited trial in Prince Harry’s lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch’s London tabloids for unlawful gathering of information opened on Tuesday. But it was immediately adjourned amid signs that the prince was weighing a last-minute settlement offer from Mr. Murdoch’s News Group Newspapers.

A lawyer for Harry petitioned the judge for an hour, before asking for yet another delay until 2 p.m. London time. During the break, lawyers huddled in the hallways of the High Court, which swarmed with journalists gathered to cover a trial that was expected to be the last major legal reckoning for victims of the phone hacking scandal that has tarnished Britain’s news media more than a decade ago.

If Harry accepts a settlement, it would spare him heavy financial risk, regardless of how he fares in court. Under English law, he would be required to pay the legal costs of both sides — which could run into the tens of millions of dollars — if the court does not award him an amount commensurate with what News Group Newspapers offered him in a settlement.

For News Group, it would avert weeks of damaging testimony about phone hacking and other unlawful methods used by its journalists to ferret out information about Harry and other prominent figures. News Group, which denies the accusations, has settled similar claims with hundreds of other plaintiffs over the years.

The judge in the case, Timothy Fancourt, granted the adjournment a bit reluctantly, telling lawyers for both sides that he would do so on the grounds that the extra time would be “beneficial” in producing some kind of outcome. There were powerful incentives for both sides to reach an accommodation.

Lawyers for Harry planned to lay out not only a pattern of unlawful behavior, but also what they describe as a systematic scheme to delete emails to cover up the hacking. They questioned why News Group had no plans to call those they claim were most responsible for the coverup: Mr. Murdoch’s younger son, James; Rebekah Brooks, the chief executive of News U.K.; and Will Lewis, a former senior executive at the company who is now the publisher of The Washington Post.