Sued by sister
Success in court for Duchess Meghan
Duchess Meghan has fought a lawsuit from her half-sister.
© imago/Avalon.red
Duchess Meghan has celebrated success in a defamation lawsuit in court. The opponent in the dispute was her half-sister Samantha.
Duchess Meghan (42) has won a court victory in a defamation lawsuit filed by her half-sister Samantha Markle (59). This is reported by “People” magazine. According to the report, the 59-year-old claimed in the lawsuit that Meghan had defamed her in several interviews, including her TV appearance on Oprah Winfrey (70). A Florida court has now dismissed the case, according to the report.
Opinion versus facts
The motion to dismiss the lawsuit was granted because Samantha Markle failed to provide statements supporting her defamation claim, the magazine reports, citing court documents. It states that the plaintiff’s claims “indicate” that Samantha Markle does not agree with Duchess Meghan’s “opinions and not statements of fact”.
In a statement provided to People magazine by Duchess Meghan’s lawyer Michael J. Kump, it says: “We are pleased with the court’s decision to dismiss the lawsuit.” According to media reports, Samantha Markle had demanded 75,000 US dollars (around 69,000 euros), among other things because Duchess Meghan told Oprah Winfrey in March 2021 in front of an audience of millions that she grew up “as an only child”. These comments caused “humiliation and hatred” for her half-sister, she subsequently claimed. Markle had previously made negative comments about Meghan in the tabloid press several times.
Samantha and Meghan share a father
Like her brother Thomas Markle Jr. (57), Samantha Markle comes from the first marriage of Meghan’s father Thomas Markle (79). He separated from Meghan’s mother Doria Ragland (67) when the future Duchess of Sussex was still a small child. After scandals surrounding their royal wedding in 2018, Prince Harry’s wife (39) is said to no longer have any contact with her father.