‘Right versus wrong’: Meghan Markle hails ‘precedent-setting’ legal victory

The Duchess of Sussex said a British court ruling that will see her avoid a public confrontation with her father is a win for ‘what’s right’.

Meghan Markle has lashed out at “cruel” tabloid news after a decisive court victory against a British tabloid for publishing a private letter to her father.

A UK high court rejected an appeal by The Mail on Sunday for breaching the Duchess of Sussex’s privacy by releasing extracts of the written correspondence to Thomas Markle in 2018.

The three-judge panel dismissed the paper’s owner Associated Newspapers Limited’s attempt to bring the case to trial, ruling the former Suits actor, 40, had a reasonable expectation of privacy.

In a statement, Meghan said her win was “precedent-setting” and a victory for “right versus wrong”.

Meghan Markle has called the court’s decision ‘precedent-setting’. Picture: Taylor Hill/WireImage

“This is a victory not just for me but for anyone else who has ever felt scared to stand up for what’s right,” Meghan said.

“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.”

The ruling, which means Meghan will not have to face her father in court, came after a three-day hearing in which the court heard fresh evidence that revealed Meghan wrote the 1250-word letter after “significant pressure” put on her from senior royals.

The Duchess had previously said it was sent after they reached “breaking point”.

Meghan Markle wrote the letter to her father Thomas Markle to put significant pressure on senior royals. Picture: Getty Images

Thomas Markle and his daughter, Meghan. Picture: Thomas Markle: My Story

The appeal came after Meghan’s win in February against ANL, which also publishes The Daily Mail and its website, The Mail Online.

Lawyers for the Duchess of Sussex told the court that the letter was “deeply personal” and that it was self-evident it was intended to be kept private.

The hearing heard 585 out of the letter’s 1250 words had been republished across five articles.

Meghan said the publisher treated the case “as a game with no rules” but that the court’s ruling showed The Mail on Sunday broke the law.

“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,” she said in her statement.

“In the nearly three years since this began, I have been patient in the face of deception, intimidation and calculated attacks.”