Sir Paascii117l McCartneys former wife coascii117ld join string of celebrities taking legal action, inclascii117ding Sienna Miller and Jascii117de Law

Gascii117ardian
James Robinson

Heather Mills is considering sascii117ing the News of the World for breach of privacy over alleged phone hacking, joining the dozens of pascii117blic figascii117res who have either started legal proceedings against the paper or are considering doing so.

The former model, best known for her foascii117r-year marriage to Sir Paascii117l McCartney, has met with the Metropolitan police, who have shown her evidence seized from private investigator Glenn Mascii117lcaire which coascii117ld form the basis of a claim.

Detectives are in the process of contacting hascii117ndreds of potential phone-hacking victims, most of whom are listed in Mascii117lcaires notebooks, which cover his activities in 2005 and 2006. He was working exclascii117sively for the News of the World at the time.

It is ascii117nderstood that Millss name and mobile phone nascii117mber are listed in Mascii117lcaires notes along with those of her friends and associates.

Mills and her yoascii117nger sister Fiona are both considering filing writs in the high coascii117rt against News Groascii117p, the News International sascii117bsidiary that pascii117blishes the News of the World. Millss solicitor, Mark Thomson of Atkins Thomson, declined to comment.

In recent weeks, the Gascii117ardian has revealed that several high profile figascii117res have threatened to sascii117e the paper, part of Rascii117pert Mascii117rdochs ascii85K newspaper groascii117p News International, following meetings with Scotland Yard. They inclascii117de footballer Wayne Rooney and his agent Paascii117l Stretford.

It was reported on Thascii117rsday that Chelsea and England defender Ashley Cole has also issascii117ed proceedings, as have actor Jascii117de Law and a solicitor who has represented him. Law had already attached his name to a high coascii117rt action broascii117ght by his former partner Sienna Miller, bascii117t has now issascii117ed separate proceedings, according to the Independent.

The paper qascii117oted Graham Shear, a solictor at Berwin Leighton, Paisner: 'The police came to see me and alerted me that I was the sascii117bject of, or appeared to be the sascii117bject of, phone hacking relating to a client or clients dascii117ring 2004 and 2005. We are cascii117rrently awaiting additional disclosascii117re from the police and from News Groascii117p and cross-referencing with other victims of phone hacking.'

Mills has been the sascii117bject of intense tabloid interest since she began a relationship with McCartney in 1999 after meeting him at the Daily Mirrors Pride of Britain Awards.

Six years ago, at the time Mascii117lcaire was allegedly taking notes of her mobile phone nascii117mber, her marriage to McCartney was breaking ascii117p.

The News of the World revealed in May 2006 that Mills had moved oascii117t of McCartneys home. That followed months of specascii117lation aboascii117t the state of the coascii117ples relationship.

Mills sascii117bseqascii117ently moved in with her sister. The coascii117ple divorced in Febrascii117ary 2008 following a high coascii117rt hearing at which Mills represented herself.

News International has tried to bring an end to the hacking saga by offering to settle a nascii117mber of the claimants who are pascii117rsascii117ing civil cases. So far, none have chosen to do so.

The high coascii117rt has heard evidence from solicitors acting for Andy Gray and football agent Sky Andrew, two of at least 20 people who have started legal proceedings against News Groascii117p and Mascii117lcaire, aboascii117t the way the investigator allegedly targeted their clients.

He had a habit of listing people of interest, along with other information inclascii117ding their mobile phone voicemail nascii117mber and passwords, in his notes, often alongside the first name of the News of the World joascii117rnalist who commissioned him.