Everything You Need to Know About Prince Harry’s Lawsuit Against the British Press


Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex

There’s only so far that you can push a person before they snap back and apparently, Prince Harry has reached his breaking point.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex
Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex | Pool/Samir Hussein/WireImage

Since Harry and his wife, Meghan Markle, first began publicly dating, the British media has been extremely hard on them as a couple. Many outlets have seemed focused on making sure Markle was painted in the most negative light possible. No matter what she did, be it wearing jeans to Wimbledon or hugging Beyonce when she met her at the European premiere of The Lion King, it was all the end of the world, according to certain publications.

Well, Prince Harry has finally had enough.

Prince Harry’s lawsuit

Normally, the royal family is pretty quiet when it comes to all of the rumors that are floating around about them. But in this case, it got so bad that Harry had to take legal action.

On Oct. 1, he released a statement regarding his lawsuit.

“As a couple, we believe in media freedom and objective, truthful reporting,” he wrote. “We regard it as a cornerstone of democracy and in the current state of the world – on every level – we have never needed responsible media more.”

“Unfortunately, my wife has become one of the latest victims of a British tabloid press that wages campaigns against individuals with no thought to the consequences – a ruthless campaign that has escalated over the past year, throughout her pregnancy and while raising our newborn son.”

For Harry, the lies spread in the media posed a threat that he could not ignore.

“There is a human cost to this relentless propaganda, specifically when it is knowingly false and malicious, and though we have continued to put on a brave face – as so many of you can relate to – I cannot begin to describe how painful it has been,” he continued. “Because in today’s digital age, press fabrications are repurposed as truth across the globe. One day’s coverage is no longer tomorrow’s chip-paper.”

He went on to defend his wife and announce the lawsuit.

“It is for this reason we are taking legal action, a process that has been many months in the making. The positive coverage of the past week from these same publications exposes the double standards of this specific press pack that has vilified her almost daily for the past nine months; they have been able to create lie after lie at her expense simply because she has not been visible while on maternity leave. She is the same woman she was a year ago on our wedding day, just as she is the same woman you’ve seen on this Africa tour.”

What is Prince Harry suing for?

Since Harry cannot just sue the media in general, he had to pick a specific instance to sue the parent company of British tabloid, Mail on Sunday, for. 

“This particular legal action hinges on one incident in a long and disturbing pattern of behaviour by British tabloid media,” the statement continued. “The contents of a private letter were published unlawfully in an intentionally destructive manner to manipulate you, the reader, and further the divisive agenda of the media group in question. In addition to their unlawful publication of this private document, they purposely misled you by strategically omitting select paragraphs, specific sentences, and even singular words to mask the lies they had perpetuated for over a year.”

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While at Victoria Yards in Johannesburg this afternoon, The Duchess of Sussex had the opportunity to learn more about the importance of, and how to enable a ‘wellbeing economy’ thanks to Co-Director of the Maker’s Valley Partnership, Simon Sizwe. Simon was awarded a full scholarship to attend the Young African Leaders Initiative programme initiated by President Obama, and he explained that by investing in the overall well-being of a community and its people, and focusing on that economy, you can enrich everyone for a better quality of life. She also met with the owners of Sobae Frozen, an entrepreneurial duo who created their small business as a solution to food waste, creating vegan sorbet from unused fruit from Victoria Yards. At the end of her visit, The Duchess was moved by the original poetry of Belita Andre, the winner of the Poetry Grandslam. In her reading she said: “The Maker’s Valley is a social and enterprise hub, a wave between my corner of the world and yours. Insisting that beyond the anchors of survival. How to make sure that everyone gets to shore, pass around an ocean of stars, not because our sleepless nights are equal but because our dreams are.” • #RoyalVisitSouthAfrica

A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on

What happens if Markle and Prince Harry win the lawsuit?

As far as monetary gains from this lawsuit, the case is being paid for by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, so any money that they win from the suit will be donated to an anti-bullying charity, according to Insider.

It is unclear whether or not winning this case will cause the media to ease up on the Sussexes when reporting. After all, salacious headlines are what gossip sites are famous for.




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