Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are about to get into a legal battle with the British tabloid press. On Friday, April 24, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will have their first hearing, albeit remotely, against the Associated Newspapers, which owns Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday.
In October 2019, Prince Harry and Meghan filed a lawsuit against the Associated Newspapers for their alleged propaganda against the Duchess of Sussex. The couple claimed that the publication printed edited private contents of a letter that Meghan wrote for her father, Thomas Markle, to paint the duchess in a bad light.
Prince Harry and Meghan's lawyers said that the Associated Newspapers violated data protection laws and invaded her privacy. The publications report also had an analysis of a "handwriting expert" who claimed that Meghan's handwritten letter to her dad revealed a "showman and a narcissist."
The problem began when People ran a story in February 2019 involving five of Meghan's friends who defended the Duchess of Sussex from the bad press she was getting prior to her wedding to Prince Harry. They said that that Meghan wrote her father a letter and pleaded for them to mend their relationship outside of the press.
However, Thomas felt that the People story vilified him thus he gave Meghan's letter to Associated Newspapers, which published parts of it to clear Thomas. The British tabloid press also said that Meghan sanctioned the People story with her friends. However, the Duchess of Sussex has always denied that she had any knowledge to this interview.
Meanwhile, ahead of the hearing on Friday, Prince Harry and Meghan's lawyers released a transcript of text messages that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex sent to Thomas. It revealed that Meghan was concerned for her father's health despite Thomas telling the tabloids that his daughter abandoned him after he had a heart attack.
The transcripts also showed Prince Harry pleading with Thomas to speak to them. However, Thomas went to the press with his story instead of talking to his daughter.
Thomas worked as former lighting director in Hollywood when Meghan was in her teens. He supported her throughout her career in Hollywood and was supposed to walk her down the aisle for her May 2018 wedding to Prince Harry.
However, Thomas staged a paparazzi shot prior to the wedding despite Prince Harry and Meghan warning him not to engage the press. Later, he told his daughter he couldn't come to the wedding because he had a heart attack.
Prince Harry explained that they needed to take legal action against the tabloid press because he could no longer watch his wife suffer in silence. He said that there has been ruthless campaign against Meghan that has spurned unverified stories.
