The Duchess of Sussex has won her High Court privacy claim against British tabloid the Mail on Sunday over the publication of a letter to her estranged father, Thomas Markle.
In a statement, Meghan Markle thanked husband Harry and her mother Doria for their support and said she was "grateful to the courts for holding Associated Newspapers and The Mail on Sunday to account for their illegal and dehumanizing practices" for breach of copyright
"In fact, they’ve been going on for far too long without consequence. For these outlets, it’s a game," the Duchess said.
"For me and so many others, it’s real life, real relationships, and very real sadness. The damage they have done and continue to do runs deep."
The 39-year-old took legal action against the newspaper for alleged misuse of private information, copyright infringement and breach of the Data Protection Act over five articles published in February 2019, which included extracts from the letter.
In his ruling, Lord Justice Warby said: "The claimant had a reasonable expectation that the contents of the letter would remain private. The Mail articles interfered with that."
A secondary claim of copyright infringement was not totally dismissed, with a future hearing set for next month, and a third allegation around data protection is still live.
Today’s ruling means the Duchess will likely not have to face off against her estranged father across a courtroom, and has been vindicated in her decision to take legal action against the media group.
Associated Newspapers have issued a statement in response to the ruling saying it was "surprised and disappointed in the ruling".
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