Angelina Jolie’s former stunt double battles to have phone-hacking case heard in US
The legal team representing Eunice Huthart claims that she would be thrust into the 'litigation equivalent of purgatory' if she was forced to pursue her case against News Corp in Britain
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The British former stunt double of the actress Angelina Jolie is facing a legal battle to keep her claim against Rupert Murdoch’s media empire for alleged phone hacking within the US court system.
Eunice Huthart, a former star of the Gladiators television show, was the first alleged victim of hacking to pursue a case against News Corp in the United States, where the company owns The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.
The company has already paid out millions to victims in the UK, including £2m to the parents of Milly Dowler and £300,000 to the singer Charlotte Church.
But Ms Huthart’s legal team claims that she would be thrust into the “litigation equivalent of purgatory” if she was forced to pursue her case in Britain, according to legal papers. A second tranche of 25 claims are set to be heard in October, but Ms Huthart did not meet the deadline for that case. While her claim can still be heard, any claim would be held in “procedural limbo”, according to her legal team.
Norman Siegel, a lawyer for Ms Huthart, confirmed that other cases had been considered. “We have looked into the others and we thought Eunice’s was the one to file.” He declined to say if other cases would be brought if the judge’s decision went their way.
In a separate filing, lawyers for News Corp said there would be “no possibility” that her case could not be heard in the UK and said that it should not be heard in the US. “There is no question that the courts of Ms Huthart’s home country remain open to her, would exercise jurisdiction over the defendants, and provide remedies for the wrongs alleged,” it said.
The claim has been lodged in California and alleges that her mobile phone messages were eavesdropped to obtain stories published in The Sun and The News of the World.
She was living with Ms Jolie in Los Angeles as they worked on the hit film Mr & Mrs Smith when her phone was allegedly hacked in 2004 and 2005. It was during this time that Ms Jolie began her relationship with the actor Brad Pitt.
In 1994, the Liverpudlian was a contestant on ITV’s Gladiators. She won, and joined the show as a professional. Ms Huthart went on to work in stunts for the James Bond film GoldenEye, Titanic and the Tomb Raider series.