Meghan Markle and Prince Harry recently announced that they were taking legal action against Mail On Sunday and the Daily Mail for publishing and editing private letters written by the Duchess of Sussex to her estranged father, Thomas Markle. However, sources now say that the Sussex royals carried out this plan without letting Prince Charles and Prince William know and without heeding to the advice of senior royal aides.
The letter, published on the Sussex's official site, showed how Prince Harry is standing up against the "ruthless campaign" leveled at his wife by the press. He said that they had evaluated the process of filing a legal action for many months for fear that the bullying could have a devastating effect, similar to the fate of Princess Diana, Prince Harry's mother, who was hounded by the press until the last hours of her death.
However, palaces sources are reportedly worried that the timing of the announcement could impact Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan's South African tour, which has been deemed a rousing success. The royal aides said that Prince Harry's letter announcing the legal action against a member of the press could push the positive stories from their royal tour off the headlines.
Sources also said that Prince Harry wrote and published the letter without seeking any help from the people around them. According to The Sun, the Duke of Sussex refused to consult with his father and brother but, apparently, the communications secretary of Queen Elizabeth said that she was informed about the lawsuit.
Royal experts weighed in on Prince Harry's letter as well and said that this was a "monumental misjudgment" on the duke's part. Some critics also said that it was an overly emotional statement.
According to Daily Express, the High Court processed the lawsuit as of Sept. 30 and is awaiting a "Particulars of Claim" from Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan. The Sussex royals said that Mail On Sunday published the contents of the duchess' letter to her father in a way that was meant to mislead the readers. Apparently, some words and portions of the letter were omitted to put Duchess Meghan in a bad light.
The publication was also in breach of the U.K.'s Data Protection Act 2018, which necessitated the letter's author's permission before publishing. However, Mail On Sunday issued a statement to deny the accusations, citing that their report didn't edit out Duchess Meghan's letters to change its meaning and that it will strongly defend itself from the lawsuit.
