Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Aug 04, 2025

A UK Tabloid Printed A Front-Page Apology To Meghan Markle For Publishing A Private Letter She Sent Her Father

A UK Tabloid Printed A Front-Page Apology To Meghan Markle For Publishing A Private Letter She Sent Her Father

The publishers of the Mail on Sunday and Mail Online were required to print a statement acknowledging Meghan's legal victory after losing a lawsuit.

A UK newspaper was forced to print an admission that it had violated the rights of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, on Sunday after losing a privacy and copyright infringement lawsuit.

The court-mandated apology and an unspecified amount of money in financial reparations mark the end of a multiyear legal battle between Meghan and Associated Newspapers Limited, the parent company of the Mail on Sunday and Mail Online. The duchess sued ANL in October 2019 for violating her privacy and copyright rights after the company published excerpts from a handwritten letter she sent her estranged father, Thomas Markle, in the Mail on Sunday and in a number of stories published on Mail Online.

"Following a hearing on 19-20 January, 2021, and a further hearing on 5 May, 2021, the Court has given judgment for the Duchess of Sussex on her claim for copyright infringement," the statement said. "The Court found that Associated Newspapers infringed her copyright by publishing extracts of her handwritten letters to her father in the Mail on Sunday and on Mail Online. Financial remedies have been agreed."

On Feb. 11, High Court Lord Justice Mark Warby ruled in Meghan's favor in a summary judgment, a type of verdict granted when a judge determines that no trial is needed because the evidence is so overwhelming. In his decision, Warby wrote that “there is no prospect that a different judgment would be reached after a trial."

ANL's lawyers appealed the ruling, claiming that Warby was wrong to award Meghan victory via summary judgment and arguing for the right to present their case at trial — something the duchess has fought against from the beginning of the proceedings.

"To permit the defense to go to trial would only have facilitated further invasions of [Meghan's] privacy," her lawyers wrote to the UK Court of Appeal in November. Meghan's legal team accused ANL of pushing for a trial because it would give the tabloid company "the opportunity to profit handsomely from the media circus that would inevitably result."

During the appeal proceedings in November, lawyers for ANL argued that Warby made his judgment without knowing all of the information — and presented new evidence in the form of written testimony from the Sussexes’ former communications secretary Jason Knauf that showed inconsistencies in Meghan's statements to the court about the letter and her expectations of privacy.

According to Knauf, Meghan composed the letter knowing that her father might give it to the press. And although Meghan swore under oath that she never coordinated with members of the media to share private information, Knauf provided the court with emails between himself and the duchess discussing what she wanted him to say in a secret briefing with two reporters who were writing what proved to be a very sympathetic biography of the Sussexes. In response to Knauf's revelations, in a witness statement filed Nov. 11, Meghan apologized to the court “for the fact that [she] had not remembered these exchanges" and swore she “had no intention to mislead the defendant or the court.”

However, the fact that Meghan — intentionally or unintentionally — was not entirely truthful ultimately had no effect on the Court of Appeal, which ruled in her favor in a judgment issued Dec. 2.

The Mail on Sunday

Although ANL said in a post-verdict statement that it was considering appealing the case to the UK Supreme Court, its publication of the apology Sunday signaled that the company has finally admitted defeat.

As part of his initial judgment in Meghan's favor in February, Warby ordered ANL to publish a statement in print and online that acknowledged the company violated the duchess's copyright rights. According to UK law, "Where the court finds that an intellectual property right has been infringed, the court may, at the request of the applicant, order appropriate measures for the dissemination and publication of the judgment to be taken at the expense of the infringer."

Mail on Sunday


As can be seen in an order filed by Warby on March 22, the wording and format of ANL's statement was a source of contention — down to the font size in which the text would be printed and how long the statement would remain on Mail Online's website.

The agreed-upon text was published Sunday on the third page of the newspaper, with a statement on the front page directing readers to it.

The same text, with links to the court's judgments, is currently on display on Mail Online's homepage and will be for the next week. (Many commentators pointed out that ANL chose to carry out the court order the day after Christmas, a day when few people typically read newspapers.)


In a statement issued in response to the Court of Appeal's ruling in her favor on Dec. 2, Meghan said that her win was not just for her 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.

"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," she said.

"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."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
OpenAI’s Bold Bet: Teaching AI to Think, Not Just Chat
Tesla Seeks Shareholder Approval for $29 Billion Compensation Package for Elon Musk
Nvidia is cutting prices on its RTX 50-series graphics cards after sales slowed and inventories piled up
Ghislaine Maxwell Transferred to Minimum-Security Prison Amid Ongoing DOJ Discussions
U.S. Tariffs Surge to Highest Levels in Nearly a Century Under Second Trump Term
Matt Taibbi Slams Media for Role in Russiagate Narrative
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
×