On December 26, the Mail on Sunday and its website version Mail Online published a front-page notice that acknowledged Duchess Meghan’s legal victory against the tabloid’s publisher, Associated Newspapers. The notice read, “The Duchess of Sussex wins her legal case for copyright infringement against Associated Newspapers for articles published in The Mail on Sunday and posted on Mail Online.” It went on, “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 Court found that Associated Newspapers infringed her copyright by publishing extracts of her handwritten letter to her father in The Mail on Sunday and on Mail Online. Financial remedies have been agreed.” Associated Newspapers must pay damages and £1.5m ($1.88m) in legal costs to Meghan. Royal reporter Omid Scobie pointed out that the apology was published the day after Christmas, which is “traditionally one of the quietest news days of the year… with the smallest newspaper sales.” No photo of Meghan accompanied the apology, but her fans—who call themselves the Sussex Squad—created mock-ups of the tabloid’s front page that featured large photos of the duchess celebrating her victory. Harper’s Bazaar reports, “Within hours #MeghanMarkleWon trended across Twitter, with over 25,000 tweets in the U.S. carrying the hashtag at the time of this article being published.” Meghan had sued Associated Newspapers Limited over the publication of five extracts from a “private and personal letter” she wrote to Thomas Markle in 2018. The judges’ ruling that Meghan had a “reasonable expectation of privacy” in writing the letter brings her three-year fight to an end. Here’s the duchess’s full statement: “This is a victory not just for me, 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. In the nearly three years since this began, I have been patient in the face of deception, intimidation, and calculated attacks. “Today, the courts ruled in my favor—again—cementing that The Mail on Sunday, owned by Lord Jonathan Rothermere, has broken the law. The courts have held the defendant to account, and my hope is that we all begin to do the same. 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.” Next up, Find Out What Meghan Markle’s Net Worth Is in 2021 Now That She’s No Longer A Senior Royal
