Samantha Markle’s attorney got a rough ride during a make-or-break hearing in her three-year lawsuit against her sister, Meghan Markle.
The Duchess of Sussex told Oprah Winfrey in 2021 that she was brought up as an only child, while her Netflix show painted Samantha Markle as a member of an online hate group.
Samantha Markle is now suing over both characterizations and having lost at Federal Court in Tampa, Florida, the case was at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday.
Meghan Markle attends the Terrance Higgins Trust World AIDS Day charity fair at Nottingham Contemporary, in England, on December 1, 2017.
Meghan Markle attends the Terrance Higgins Trust World AIDS Day charity fair at Nottingham Contemporary, in England, on December 1, 2017.
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
Why It Matters
Samantha Markle’s attorney, Peter Ticktin, of The Ticktin Law Group, recently told Newsweek this was a make-or-break moment as there is no higher court that can be expected to take on the case.
What to Know
Ticktin argued in court that Meghan waged a campaign to unfairly undermine her sister and as a result Samantha Markle received death threats from Sussex’s fans.
Meghan’s team has been arguing the statements complained about were largely opinions or were substantially true, and therefore not defamatory.
In order to overturn a past ruling at Federal Court, Ticktin had to show that the original judge, Charlene Edwards Honeywell, made an error in how she reached her decision.
Chief U.S. Circuit Judge William Pryor, though, did not sound particularly persuaded by his arguments.
“It seems to me that everything you argue about is beside the point,” Pryor said, quoted by Courthouse News Service.
“Because when the district court rules…you have to knock down in your opening brief every basis for the district court’s ruling, and you didn’t even touch this.”
What People Are Saying
Meghan Markle was asked about Samantha Markle by Oprah Winfrey in March 2021: “I think it’d be very hard to tell all when you don’t know me. And I mean, this is a very different situation than my dad, right? When you talk about betrayal, betrayal comes from someone that you have a relationship with, right?
“I don’t feel comfortable talking about people that I really don’t know. But I grew up as an only child, which everyone who grew up around me knows.”
A past filing by Samantha Markle’s team read: “During their childhood, the duchess was very close to her older sister despite their 17-year age difference.
“Mrs. Markle was more than a model to follow, but she was also the one who regularly drove the duchess to school and helped her with homework, went on shopping trips to the local mall, and overall had a wonderful relationship with her younger sister.”
Quoted by U.K. broadsheet The Times, Chief U.S. Circuit Judge William Pryor told Ticktin: “The district court has worked hard on their decision and explained all of their rulings.
“If you haven’t attacked one of the alternative grounds of the district court’s ruling, I don’t see how we can fault the district court for having reached the verdict that it did.”
What Happens Next
The court’s final decision will be given at a later date.
Do you have a question about King Charles III and Queen Camilla, Prince William and Princess Kate, Meghan and Prince Harry, or their family that you would like our experienced royal correspondents to answer? Email royals@newsweek.com. We’d love to hear from you.