Meghan Markle wins again.
The actress has been locked in a court battle with the publishers of Mail on Sunday for years now. As you may know, back in February 2019 the tabloid published parts of a handwritten letter she wrote to her father, Thomas Markle, shortly before her wedding to Prince Harry. Earlier this year, a judge allowed a “summary judgment” (meaning, no trial) in her favor, ruling that Mail on Sunday had in fact breached the actress’s privacy. The publishers appealed the judgment, arguing that the case should go to trial.
Related: Texts From Court Claim Harry’s Family Was ‘Berating’ Him Over Meg’s Father
Luckily for Meg, the Court of Appeals agreed with the original ruling. On Thursday, they found that she had “reasonable expectation of privacy” regarding her letter, the contents of which were “personal, private and not matters of legitimate public interest.”
The Duchess of Sussex released a lengthy statement in response to her big win, writing:
“This is a victory not just for me, but for anyone who has ever felt scared to stand up for what’s right. While this win is precedent setting, what matters most is that we are now collectively brave enough to reshape a tabloid industry that conditions people to be cruel, and profits from the lies and pain that they create.”
She continued:
“From day one, I have treated this lawsuit as an important measure of right versus wrong. The defendant has treated it as a game with no rules. The longer they dragged it out, the more they could twist facts and manipulate the public (even during the appeal itself), making a straightforward case extraordinarily convoluted in order to generate more headlines and sell more newspapers — a model that rewards chaos above truth. In the nearly three years since this began, I have been patient in the face of deception, intimidation, and calculated attacks.”
The major “attack” during the appeal process was a witness statement from Harry’s former private secretary, Jason Knauf. He stated that the letter to Thomas was written with the idea in mind that he would likely to leak it to the press. (Obviously, she was proven correct on that point.) The Mail on Sunday team argued she had no expectation of privacy if she was writing something she was well aware would be published.
Related: Harry & Meghan Denounce Tabloids After PI Admits To Illegally Selling Info
But just because she was preparing for the worst doesn’t negate the Suits alum’s right to privacy. Concluding her victory lap, the mother of two slammed the outlet:
“Today, the courts ruled in my favor — again cementing that The Mail on Sunday, owned by Lord Jonathan Rothermere, has broken the law. The courts have held the defendant to account, and my hope is that we all begin to do the same. Because as far removed as it may seem from your personal life, it’s not. Tomorrow it could be you. These harmful practices don’t happen once in a blue moon – they are a daily fail that divide us, and we all deserve better.”
LOLz! Did she really sneak a “Daily Fail” jab in there?! Savage!
Seriously though, we’re glad Meghan came out of this fight on top. Her battle for reform in the media may not be over, but she’s on her way to changing things for the better.
[Image via WENN/Avalon]
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