A British newspaper editor announced on Tuesday that he plans to appeal against a judge’s decision that she has invaded Meghan Markle’s privacy by publishing parts of a letter she wrote to her distant father after her marriage to the prince Harry in 2018.
In written submissions released as part of a hearing on Tuesday, Associated Newspapers attorney Antony White asked for permission to appeal, saying that an attempt to overturn the decision of Supreme Court judge Mark Warby “would have a perspective real success “.
In response, the Duchess of Sussex’s lawyers demanded that the publisher deliver the letter and destroy any electronic copies or notes he owned. They also asked the judge to order Mail on Sunday to remove the five articles from its website and a front-page statement about the 39-year-old’s legal victory.
“The defendant continues to defiantly carry out the same acts that the court found to be illegal,” said Ian Mill, a lawyer for the former American actress.
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The British tabloid published a private letter that Meghan Markle (left) wrote to her father, former Hollywood lighting director Thomas Markle (right).
(Getty Images / Mega)
“The defendant did not deliver the copies he has of the letter, so the threat of infringing and subsequently misusing his private information remains real and, inexplicably, the defendant has not yet removed the infringing articles from MailOnline.”
The former “Suits” star has sued Associated Newspapers for breach of privacy and copyright infringement in five February 2019 articles on Mail on Sunday and the MailOnline website that reproduced large parts of a letter she wrote to her father , Thomas Markle.
Last month, Warby determined that the publisher had misused the Duchess’s private information and infringed on her copyright. He said Markle “had a reasonable expectation that the letter’s content would remain private”. He also concluded that the publication of large parts of the letter in the newspaper was “manifestly excessive and, therefore, illegal”.
In his decision last month, the judge said a “limited trial” should be held to decide the “minor” question of whether Markle was “the only author” and the sole copyright holder of the letter. It is expected to happen in the fall.
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Meghan Markle and Prince Harry currently reside in California with their son Archie.
(Getty)
At the time of Warby’s decision, Markle broke his silence.
“After two long years of litigation, I am grateful to the courts for holding Associated Newspapers and The Mail on Sunday responsible for their illegal and dehumanizing practices,” the 39-year-old said in a statement sent to Fox News last month.
“These tactics (and those of its sister publications MailOnline and the Daily Mail) are not new; in fact, they have been going on for a long time without consequences,” she shared. “For these media, it is a game. For me and so many others, it is real life, real relationships and very real sadness. The damage they have done and continue to do is profound.”
“The world needs reliable, verified and high-quality news,” continued Markle. “What The Mail on Sunday and its partner publications do is the opposite. We all lose when disinformation sells more than the truth, when moral exploitation sells more than decency and when companies create their business model to profit from people’s pain.
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The Duchess of Sussex is expecting her second child.
(Getty)
“But for today, with this comprehensive victory in privacy and copyright, we all win. Now we know, and we hope it sets a legal precedent, that you cannot take someone else’s privacy and exploit it in a privacy case, as the defendant has shamelessly done in the past two years. I share this victory with each of you – because we all deserve justice and truth, and we all deserve better. “
“I want to particularly thank my husband, mother and legal team, and especially Jenny Afia, for their relentless support throughout this process”, concluded the Duchess.
Markle married Harry, 36, grandson of Queen Elizabeth II, at Windsor Castle in May 2018. Her son, Archie, was born the following year.
In early 2020, the couple announced that they were leaving real duties and moving to North America, citing what they said were the British media’s unbearable intrusions and racist attitudes. They recently bought a house in Santa Barbara, California, and are expecting a second child.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.