( CNN ) -- A French magazine has been fined for publishing topless photographs of Britain 's likely future queen , Catherine , Duchess of Cambridge , and ordered not to distribute the magazine in print or online , a French court ruled Tuesday . The court ordered Closer magazine to hand over the original photos to the royal family within 24 hours of the ruling and to pay them 2,000 euros ( about $ 2,600 ) . The magazine must pay a further 10,000 euros a day if it is late in handing over the photos . And a French prosecutor opened a preliminary criminal investigation into the incident , the Nanterre prosecutor 's office said Tuesday . Catherine and her husband , Prince William , the second in line to the throne , `` welcome the injunction that 's been granted . They always believed the law was broken and that they were entitled to their privacy , '' the palace said . French law provides for `` draconian sanctions '' to protect against invasions of privacy , British lawyer Charlotte Harris said , including orders to take magazines off shelves and the imposition of serious fines . Separately , the board of a newspaper that published the topless photos is conducting an internal investigation . The board of the Irish Daily Star was considering shutting down the newspaper but decided to await the investigation results , which are expected in `` a few weeks . '' After the Irish Daily Star published the photos Saturday , one of the newspaper 's editors was suspended , pending the investigation . The royal family filed a criminal complaint seeking invasion of privacy charges against Closer and possibly the photographer , a palace spokeswoman said . The photos of Catherine sunbathing are more about invasion of privacy rather than nudity , royal biographer Christopher Andersen said . Prince William and his brother , Prince Harry , still blame the media for the 1997 death of their mother , Princess Diana , in a Paris traffic accident as her driver fled paparazzi , Andersen said . French investigators concluded the driver of the car Diana was traveling in lost control while he was intoxicated . The royal family is concerned about similar invasions , particularly if William and Catherine have a child , Andersen said . In a civil court proceeding Monday in Paris , attorneys for the royals asked for damages and a court order to prevent the photos from being published again . William and Kate : Keeping calm and carrying on . They also want existing photos taken offline , a palace spokesman said . The court ruled in their favor on both counts Tuesday . Lawyer Aurelien Hamelle denounced the published photos in court Monday , calling them an infringement of privacy , CNN affiliates reported . `` It is a scene of married life , intimate , personal , that has nothing to do on a magazine , '' Hamelle said . Chi , an Italian magazine owned by the same company as Closer , put out a special edition Monday with 26 pages of photos of William and Catherine on vacation . As editors at Closer did last week , Chi executives defended publishing the photos despite the furor from London . `` It is a story worth publishing in an extraordinary edition because it shows in a natural light the everyday life of a very famous contemporary young couple in love , '' Editor-in-Chief Alfonso Signorini said in a statement . Chi and Closer are owned by the Mondadori publishing company , which is headed by Marina Berlusconi , daughter of former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi . Opinion : Wake up , Kate ; photogs are always watching . CNN 's Per Nyberg , Laura Smith-Spark and Hada Messia , and journalist Peter Taggart contributed to this report .
NEW : Irish Daily Star is conducting investigation before deciding whether to shut down . Catherine and Prince William `` welcome '' the injunction , the palace says . A court orders Closer magazine to hand over the photos within 24 hours . The royals have also filed a criminal complaint in France .