Rupert Murdoch's News Corp empire could face charges in America over phone hacking scandal after it was claimed that The News of the World hacked into Jude Law's phone while he was in the United States.

It is the first specific case of hacking on U.S. soil leaving the company open to prosecution under federal law.

The alleged hacking of Law and his personal assistant Ben Jackson took place shortly after they arrived at JFK airport, meaning their phones were operating in U.S. mobile networks.

Prosecutions and costly law suits could be launched in the U.S. regardless of where the hacker was based.

The company is already facing investigations by the FBI and Attorney General over claims the relatves of 9/11 victims were hacked.

Murdoch's American empire is also said to be 'exploding and unravelling' as he faces the threat of losing control of his Fox and other cable networks if found guilty of breaching anti-corruption laws.

One of the tycoon's most senior deputies Les Hinton has already quit  as CEO of Dow Jones, which published the Wall Street Journal. He was  chairman of the UK subsidiary News International when the hacking took place.

He said he had no knowledge of the hacking.

Law, 38, who is also suing the News of the World's stablemate The Sun, claims that the Sunday tabloid hacked into his phone and used the messages for four articles in 2005 and 2006.

The hacking is alleged to have taken place when he was staying in New York en route to Canada to film I Heart Huckabees.

The story claimed that Law had sent his personal assistant ahead when he arrived at JFK to check for waiting photographers and ring him if it was safe to emerge. A News of the World reporter watched Law arrive at the airport.