JULY 10, 2011

Mosley supported News of the World victims

The Daily Telegraph has revealed that Max Mosley has bankrolled some of the court actions brought against News of the World by the victims of phone hacking.

The closure of News of the World, which publishes its last edition today in the UK, has dominated the British media since it was announced on Friday. Mosley won £60,000 damages from the paper in 2008 for breach of privacy over the paper's revelations concerning his sex life.

Although several of those involved in phone hacking actions against the newpaper are celebrities with sufficient funding to fight court battles, The Daily Telegraph claims that sources have confirmed that Mosley, 71, has been supporting less wealthy victims of hacking by private investigators working on behalf of the newspaper.

"It's true to say that Max has been funding a number of cases," a source told The Telegraph. "There are a number of cases where the claimants do not have much money and could face losing a lot if News International were somehow to win some of those. He has been guaranteeing the court actions go ahead by putting money into an account so if somebody does lose a case against the News of the World, he will pay all the court costs. He has also paid court fees for things like lodging court papers which can be extremely costly."

A spokeman for the former FIA president declined to comment.