Madonna has accepted substantial undisclosed damages for privacy and infringement of copyright over the Mail on Sunday’s publication of “purloined” photos of her wedding to Guy Ritchie.

The singer, who has just completed her Sticky & Sweet world tour, was not at London’s High Court for the settlement of her action against Associated Newspapers.

Her solicitor, John Kelly, told Mr Justice Peter Smith that she would be donating the damages to her Raising Malawi charity.

Mr Kelly said that the star went to great pains to ensure that the December 2000 wedding was wholly private.

But, in 2003, an interior designer, who was working on her home in Beverly Hills, surreptitiously copied at least 27 photos from the wedding album and provided them to Bonnie Robinson who, in June 2008, offered to sell them to the Mail on Sunday.

Mr Kelly said that the newspaper did not purchase them at that time but waited until October 2008, when Madonna had announced that she was divorcing and there was huge media interest about her marriage, to purchase the purloined photos.

Just three days after she had announced her divorce – and without any warning to Madonna – it published 10 of the photos.

Associated Newspapers’ solicitor, Niri Shan, said that it accepted that it was wrong to act in this way and offered its sincere apologies to Madonna and her family for invading her privacy and infringing her copyright.