British actor Jude Law has sued the tabloid The Sun, part of the group controlled by the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch, accusing the publication that it intercepted telephone conversations to obtain information about his private life. The phone hacking was done in U.S., where Jude Law and his personal assistant were using their cellular phones. For News Corp., this opens a case of a costly lawsuit for breaking federal U.S. laws.
The management of the company News International, owned by Murdoch, at the center of a huge scandal triggered by wiretaps that led to the closure of one of the most important publications of the trust, the tabloid News of the World, reacted immediately to the decision of the actor Jude Law, hollywoodreporter.com reports.
News International company lawyers have said the British actor’s action is a “deeply cynical and deliberate malicious attempt” to attract The Sun newspaper, last important left tabloid of the group News International, following the scandal that led to the closure of newspaper News of the World , after an existence of over 160 years.
In a statement Friday, representatives of the News International said that the accusations of Jude Law “have no foundation”, saying that they will strongly fight the claims of the actor.
On the other hand, Rebekah Brooks announced Friday that she resigned as chief executive of News International. Les Hinton, director of Wall Street Journal, who was CEO of this company during the period when those wiretaps were in place, also announced Friday that he resigned as CEO of Dow Jones, American subsidiary of News Corp.
Atkins Thomson law firm hired by Jude Law, declined to provide details about the lawsuit, merely stating that “the allegations (made by the actor) from take thair natural course, and will be heard in court”.
Jude Law also sued the tabloid News of the World.