Prince Philip‘s will is not going to be made public for quite some time.
After his passing in April, it was ruled by the U.K.’s High Court that the contents of Prince Philip’s are to remain private for at least 90 years. Following this decision, The Guardian legally challenged the fact that members of the media were not present at a July 2021 hearing during which the ruling was passed down, per BBC News. Although the outlet argued that there was a “lack of external scrutiny,” judges have now rejected The Guardian‘s claim.
Why? The judges, Sir Geoffrey Vos, Dame Victoria Sharp and Lady Justice King, ruled on July 29 that there were “exceptional” circumstances for the decision to be made in private, per the outlet. The ruling found that there was no obligation to tell the press about the hearing as it would risk a “media storm” occurring.
“These circumstances are, as we have said, exceptional,” the ruling said. “We are not sure that there is a specific public interest in knowing how the assets of the Royal Family are distributed.”