Meghan Markle won’t back down against sister’s defamation case

Meghan Markle’s extended family has not shied away from criticising her on public platforms since she become a member of the British Royal Family, and the former actress is not backing down. 

Samantha Markle sued her half-sister for defamation for allegedly making “false and malicious” accusations about her childhood in the controversial and bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey last year. 

Meghan said in the interview she grew up as an only child, but the former Suits actress’s legal team argued in court that her description of this is not an “objective fact”.

The Duchess of Sussex says because of this, there is no basis for her half-sister to sue her for defamation.

Meghan and her husband Prince Harry’s controversial Oprah interview did not sit well with her in-laws or her family. 

The Mirror reported that Meghan’s legal team stated their client’s claims cannot be false because it is a “textbook example of a subjective statement of how a person feels about their childhood”. 

Because of this, Meghan’s lawyers have asked for the case to be dismissed. 

The court papers further state: “Plaintiff [Samantha] first asserts that she can disprove that Meghan “grew up as an only child”.

But this perception is entirely unfalsifiable. It is hard to imagine a more personal and subjective feeling than how one views their own childhood.

“Moreover, Plaintiff’s opposition completely ignores the context of the statement where Ms Winfrey asked Meghan about her relationship with Plaintiff. 

“Meghan’s response was obviously not meant to be a statement of fact that she had no genetic siblings or half-siblings.”

Samantha claimed in May that Meghan had not contacted the family after her father Thomas Markle suffered a couple of heart attacks.

RELATED: Megan Markle’s dad Thomas Markle ‘can’t speak’ after suffering stroke

Speaking to GB News, Samantha said: “Two heart attacks, a pandemic and now a stroke. None of us have heard from Meghan – that’s negligence.

“If she can’t find it in her heart or have the moral conscience to step forward then shame on her. He doesn’t have a lot of time. She’s going to have to live with that for the rest of her life.”

*Compiled by Sandisiwe Mbhele