The Prince and Princess of Wales won a privacy claim against Paris Match for publishing intrusive photos. Photo / Getty Images
The Prince and Princess of Wales have won a privacy claim against a French gossip magazine that published “grossly intrusive” photographs of them on a skiing holiday with their three children.
The couple, who have long taken a hard line on their family’s right to privacy, brought legal proceedings against the publisher of Paris Match in April.
The French court ruled that the magazine had infringed the privacy and image rights of the family and must publish a judicial notice acknowledging the breach, with a penalty of €10,000 ($20,151) per issue until compliance. It was also ordered to pay the prince and princess’ legal costs.
A Kensington Palace spokesperson said on Thursday: “Their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess of Wales have been successful in legal proceedings brought in France against the owner of Paris Match, which published a grossly intrusive article and long-lens paparazzi photographs of their private family holiday in the Alps in April.
“The ruling affirms that, notwithstanding their public duties as members of the Royal Family, their Royal Highnesses and their children are entitled to respect for their private lives and family time, without unlawful interference and intrusion.
“The Prince and Princess of Wales are committed to protecting their private family time and ensuring that their children can grow up without undue scrutiny and interference. They will not hesitate to take such action as is necessary to enforce those boundaries.”
It is not the first time the couple have brought legal action in France.
In 2012, the French edition of Closer magazine published topless photos of the princess on holiday in the Luberon region of Provence, where she was relaxing at a château owned by the Queen’s nephew, Viscount Linley.
William was furious and told the court in a letter read by his lawyer that “it reminded us of the harassment that led to the death of my mother, Diana, Princess of Wales”. He added: “The clandestine way in which these photographs were taken was particularly shocking to us as it breached our privacy.”
The magazine’s lawyers sought to justify their publication on public interest grounds, claiming they disproved rumours circulating at the time that the princess might be anorexic.
But a Paris court found the publication guilty of invasion of privacy and handed the maximum fine of €45,000 ($90,000) to both Laurence Pieau, an editor of the French edition, and Ernesto Mauri, chief executive of Italian publisher Mondadori, the magazine’s owner.
The prince and princess – then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – were awarded damages of €100,000 – well short of the €1.5 million they had sought.
On April 16, Paris Match published “exclusive” long lens paparazzi photographs of the Prince and Princess on its front cover.
The couple were snapped relaxing on what appeared to be the terrace of their chalet in Courchevel, an upmarket French Alpine resort. William was pictured in shorts and a sweatshirt outside their chalet, waving a bottle of wine at his wife and children, Princess Charlotte, then 9, Prince Louis, then 6, and Prince George, then 11.
Other pictures showed the princess “following the progress” of her two younger children while George skied with William.
The prince and princess issued summary proceedings on April 28, with an oral hearing held on June 19. A Kensington Palace source said this route was chosen as a faster alternative to substantive privacy proceedings, which typically take up to two years.
Paris Match published its judicial notice, titled “Judicial publication at the request of the Prince and Princess of Wales”, on Thursday.
It said: “By order dated 18 September 2025, the urgent applications judge of the Nanterre Judicial Court found that the publication of an article and photographs in the magazine Paris Match issue No 3962, dated 10 April 2025, in addition to the publication that was made on the social media pages of Paris Match, which had infringed the respect due to their private life and the rights The Prince and Princess of Wales and their children have on their image.”
The Prince and Princess were represented in France by Alain Toucas-Massillon, appointed through their UK lawyers, Mishcon de Reya.
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