Madonna Wins Damages Against ‘The Daily Mail’ For Invasion Of Privacy In Adoption Case

Singer Madonna won a quick legal battle in the U.K. yesterday after she was awarded damages for, what her lawyer claimed to be, an “invasion of privacy.”

The 58-year-old-singer initially brought charges against The Daily Mail after they published a piece identifying the names, ages, and locations of the two twin girls the singer, at the time, was in the process of adopting from Malawi – she has since become the 4-year-old twins’ legal guardian.

At the time she had asked the media to “respect our privacy during this transitional time,” according to the BBC.

While Madonna didn’t finalize the adoption process until February, the Mail published the story in January.

“The Mail Online published at a time when, as the journalist ought to have appreciated, Madonna would be powerless to protect the girls from harm,” Jenny Afia, Madonna’s lawyer, told Judge Nicola Davies in a U.K. court on Thursday.

“Their actions could, in her view, have threatened the integrity and/or outcome of the adoption process which would have had potentially life-changing implications for the girls, as well as for Madonna and her family.”

She continued, “Many people in Malawi know of Madonna as an individual of fame and financial means.”

“In the circumstances, Madonna believes that it would have been self-evident to the reporter that the protection of the girls’ identities pending the decision about their potential adoption was likely to be vital for their safety and welfare.”

The Mail offered a settlement which Madonna accepted and pledged to give to the Mercy James Institute for Pediatric Surgery in Malawi – a hospital named after one of Madonna’s other adopted children.

“She is pleased that at least some good can come out of the situation,” Afia told the BBC.

The Mail, despite the settlement, defended their position to The Guardian afterwards.

Said a spokesman for the Mail Online, “We had no intention whatsoever of exposing the girls to any harm and no reason to believe that they were in fact exposed to harm.”

This is the second legal battle in as many weeks that the “Like a Virgin” singer has won.

A New York Supreme Court Judge ordered the halt of the sale of 22 items once belonging to the singer, including a hairbrush with Madonna’s hair, a pair of worn underwear, and a personal love letter from her deceased ex-boyfriend Tupac Shakur.