As we discussed, the Duchess of Sussex finally got her “apology” from the Mail on Sunday/Daily Mail. It was a long, tortured process which involved the Mail throwing everything they had at her. It involved Jason Knauf turning over selected emails and texts to the Mail’s lawyers, on the behest of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, in an effort to hurt Meghan’s case. It involved the Mail dragging out their appeal after Meghan won the summary judgment back in February of this year. Finally, the Mail lost their appeal at the start of December, and by December 26th, they put their “apology” to Meghan on the front page. It was a terse statement and nothing more. But it was victory for Meg. As it turns out, the Mail also agreed to pay Meghan an “undisclosed sum in settlement.”
The owners of the Mail on Sunday have finally capitulated in the privacy and breach of copyright case brought by the Duchess of Sussex, abandoning any idea of a further appeal and agreeing to pay an undisclosed sum in settlement. Following an order issued by the Court of Appeal which (among other things) required the publication of the front-page admission of defeat that appeared in the newspaper on Sunday, all that remains to be settled is the amount to be paid to the Duchess to reimburse her for her legal costs.
This brings to an end a legal process triggered nearly three years ago when the Mail on Sunday published large extracts from a personal letter she had written to her father. She sued and won in the High Court, prompting the Mail to appeal, and that appeal was dismissed earlier this month.
The newspaper company complained bitterly about its repeated humiliations in the courts and hinted it might appeal yet again to the Supreme Court, but we now know that it has thrown in the towel.
The order issued by the Court of Appeal on 14 December states that the Mail’s owners, Associated Newspapers, will pay the Duchess an undisclosed sum in settlement of her vindicated claim for breach of copyright. It will also pay her nominal damages of £1 for breach of privacy. Associated will also shoulder most of the Duchess’s legal costs in the case, a sum still to be determined but likely to exceed £1.5 million. It was ordered to make a payment on account of £300,000 in addition to a payment already made of £450,000.
While the amount of the damages remains unknown and the costs, coming on top of the Mail’s own legal bills, are very high, the simple truth is that no sum of money will make much of a dent in finances of an organisation ultimately owned by the billionaire Lord Rothermere. The price the Mail pays is in public humiliation, a humiliation completed at the weekend with the forced publication of that front-page statement and a supplementary statement on page 3, both confirming the Duchess’s victory in terms laid down by the courts.
Just so we’re clear, on December 2nd, ANI lost their appeal and on that same day, Meghan issued her hilarious “daily fail” statement in which she specifically name-checked Lord Rothermere, owner of the Mail. Twelve days later, Rothermere’s lawyers agreed to a settlement and acknowledged that they would not appeal to the British Supreme Court. Then two weeks after that, the Mail published their terse AF “apology” to Meghan. The Mail has to pay all of Meghan’s legal fees, plus an “undisclosed” amount in damages for the copyright breach. I hope the settlement was for MILLIONS.
Photos courtesy of YouTube, The Ellen Show.
Learned last night that Lord Rothermere’s last name is Harmsworth when I saw a picture of his great grandfather posing with Hitler. Very fitting last name.
Family was probably a “good friends” of Edward VIII and Wallace Simpson, too. They also befriended and admired Hitler. Once again, confirmation of the racism that is the driving force behind the attacks.
Just gonna put this out here. https://www.alamy.com/the-duchess-of-cambridge-attending-a-fund-raising-event-at-the-imperial-war-museum-in-london-with-viscount-rothermere-chairman-of-the-iwm-foundation-image336836054.html
@Chaine, I excitedly clicked before realizing that pic is from 2012; we all know they wine and dine the sleazy BM. Still more telling is that they blatantly sent Jason Knauf after Meghan and openly socialized with him at that event where McMutton shoved bugs in people’s faces. When it comes to their level of intrigue in this matter, the cats been out of the bag and that cat’s GNARLY.
Attended Duke University. 54 yo.
Well he is certainly allowing his publications to inflict a great deal of harm isn’t he? This victory is also one in the eye for Middy Pianilli and Baldimort, the Duke of Terra Cacas. I wonder why no one is investigating his motives for inserting his minion into the court proceedings when he was not subpoenaed
She plays a brilliant game of chess. Well done.
Yes brava to Meghan. She refused to be intimidated or coerced out of pursuing the law suit. The fail was disgusting through and through and I wonder how her father feels. I know he’s already spent his 30 shekels of silver and I hope the well is completely dry for him now. Knowing he will never see her or his royal grand children or get that photo op he craves, pleases me.
I wouldn’t put it past her father to come out with some deranged statement that Meghan should give him half the settlement money since the letter is his.
@My3cents: But the letter is NOT his (the father’s); otherwise, Meghan would have not had the right to sue. The letter was sent to the father, that’s all, but he doesn’t “own” it legally because he did not draft it. Thank God.
P.S.: I agree with the spirit of your statement about the father’s greed though.
Will forever admire her courage for pursuing this and sticking it out until she won. High risk, high reward. It’s what she deserves.
To the victor go the spoils. The people she was dealing with are notoriously stupid so all she had to do was did was sit back, give them enough rope and watch them hang themselves. Her team of lawyers ignored all the deflecting and Knaufing (new word I just made up to describe sending someone into to attempt to muddy the legal waters) and the MoS ended up with a lot of egg on their faces. Well done Duchess!
^^ Yep, Meghan is boss and this is a great victory! Still, I don’t think all of your phrasing about Meghan only having to “sit back and watch,” is completely accurate. To a degree perhaps, but that was much later on. As the case progressed under Warby he had been allowing a lot of stuff to be entered that Sussex supporters thought was questionable. As it turns out, the judge could have been trying to be as neutral as possible in allowing as much as he thought reasonable, in order to avoid the defendant having a lot of recourse to appeal. So, the Fail got to ask Meghan a slew of invasive, intrusive, prying questions that were very tangential or unrelated to the suit.
There were a lot of rocky, uncertain moments, without a doubt. Especially early on when M&H were still in the royal firm, and were being pressured to drop the case. They were in the viper’s pit; entangled within a hornet’s nest, and they stared it all down! That’s my Duke & Duchess of Success!!! But it WAS NOT EASY! Meghan had to answer the intrusive questions from the exploitative Fail. At least though (after she’d changed attorneys a few times for different reasons), they strategized how to answer a lot of unrelated questions in a way that supported her case, and revealed information to the public that refuted many of the tabloid lies (e.g., how often she and Harry had been in touch with the sperm donor prior to the royal wedding, etc).
Above all, let’s not forget the stress the Sussexes were under while living in Tyler Perry’s more exposed mansion in Beverly Hills, with the overhead drones, etc. During this time, M&H had a lot of different legal cases going on against not only the Fail, but also other paps and tabloids. Clearly M&H are very grateful to Tyler Perry, especially for how he gave them use of not only his home, but his private plane and his security so they could get safely out of Canada before the borders closed in March 2020. Remember how Charles and the royal firm left the Sussexes high and dry in Canada at a crucial time, with security being pulled. And Justin Trudeau (although he’s their friend) as head of the Canadian government, he could no longer continue providing security either.
To top all of this off, Meghan must have gotten pregnant for the second time in April 2020. I doubt it was a planned pregnancy. In any case, as we know, she was under a lot of stress post their Salty Isle escape in trying to line up additional income; finding a new home; getting reliable security in place; dealing with those drones and all the various legal cases, all the while being continually harassed by the BM and by royal firm courtiers and family members, and haters on social media. They were also putting humanitarian efforts and the formation of Archewell at the top of their to-do list, whilst taking care of an active toddler!!! Boy, the Sussexes are bada$$, but they are also human.
^^ Cont’d part 2:
Meghan’s case went through a lot of uncertainties, no matter how stupid the Fail, their attorneys and KP are. I think the Fail and all of the BM are stupid due to their snooty self-satisfaction in expecting that it would be easy to rattle Meghan, while monetizing the legal case on their front pages at the same time. Surprisingly, Judge Warby did not place a gag order on the Fail’s self-serving coverage.
So, once again, none of this was easy. It was only providence that Meg got pregnant again about a month or so after her mid-July miscarriage. At that point, she was able to ask for a delay in the case likely by informing the court of her earlier miscarriage and her current pregnancy status. The judge forbade the Fail’s attorneys from using that information, but that was the reason for delay of the hearing that was supposed to take place in Fall 2020. Finally, Meg could breathe and try to relax in their new home and nurture herself and their growing baby. Obviously, after that, she worked on a strategy with her attorneys to file for summary judgement, and it all worked out for the best.
Judge Warby’s summary judgement ruling is a thing of beauty, but few people have actually read it. I’m glad that the appeals judges dragged the judge who allowed the Fail to appeal Judge Warby’s ruling in the first place!!! Anyway, that’s fine, cuz #MeghanMarkleWonAgain!!!
February 2021: New Sussex pregnancy announcement; March 2021: Oprah interviews Meghan & Harry *** The reverberations will go down in history!!! June 2021: Lilibet Diana Mountbatten Windsor joins her big bro Archie to complete the carrot-top Sussex brood! Diana has unleashed her DNA and her karmic energies to nurture, guide and protect her youngest son and his sweet family.
I love this for her!
She deserves it. I’m loving the run of good news from the Sussexes, from the beautiful Christmas photo to this disclosure the fail tried to hide. Also loving the unexpected bonus of TOD’s Milli Pianilli moment which led to Meghan trending instead :).
I want the amount DISCLOSED
It’s possible that the non-disclosure of the settlement was part of the deal stuck between their lawyers and Meghan’s lawyers.
Now I’m waiting for Harry’s lawsuit about having his cellphone hacked.
AMEN! It should be published far and wide to shame ANI and warn others this too will be their fate for hate. Perhaps give others courage to sue, that it’s not impossible to take on “the *big* guys”.
And Scout, I, too, can’t wait to hear about Harry’s suit!!
Me too! I don’t care what she does with the money, whether she uses it to buy another house or gives it to charity. However, if she publicly gives a large sum to some anti-bullying organizations, the amount may give a clue. Is she allowed to publicly say how much it is or is that against court orders?
I wish the privacy amount wasn’t a token payment. That will only encourage them to keep invading her privacy, because they make so much money off it.
I’d like to understand why it’s only a token payment, anyone know more about the reasoning behind it?
I wonder if the nominal amount could come with a gag order of some kind. Where in the future the FOS is prevented from reporting on some aspects of her life.
They invaded her privacy three days later by publishing photos of her shopping in Montecito. Doesn’t look like they’re doing to stop, but are ramping up the privacy invasions as a result of the agreement.
The statement on Sunday didn’t mention the privacy ruling, just the copyright. I thought the Mail was continuing with trying to appeal the privacy claim. I knew Byline would clarify what happened. At least she’s won the whole case.
There is an expectation in these cases that if a defendant offers a reasonable settlement the plaintiff should accept and not take up the court’s time unnecessarily. The cost of litigation also makes it difficult for many plaintiffs to continue with a case. This is why most of the phone hacking victims accept a financial settlement. Harry is one of a small group continuimg to pursue a case against the Mirror. There is a strong public interest element in phone hacking by the press so this would be a good reason not to accept a settlement.
I do not disagree, you’re right Nota but I want to bring up a US case. Taylor Swift litigated here in the states when a radio guy had his hands copping a feel all over her ass during a promotion. Since she is wealthy she sued for $1. When she won, it rippled and even the Supreme Court judges discussed it and noted it favorably. It was a move that said “I don’t need your money but you can’t violate me like that.” Meghan could be sidestepping accusations of greed, since the Brit media will throw everything and then some at Meghan.
@Truthiness – very interesting! Meghan and her counsel would of course be aware of that case. I bet that’s the explanation for why the the privacy part of the claim was settled for 1 pound. IIRC, the initial feeling was, Meghan wasn’t likely to win on that, it’s harder to prove. And if it’s true what Byline says, that the overall costs likely won’t make a dent in Lord R’s finances, a bigger settlement for this portion won’t be a future deterrent.
The copyright infringement though is cut and dried, and I hope, having agreed to minimal damages for the privacy portion, she nailed them to the wall on the copyright issue.
I’m hoping we get a leak, or some subtle release that the Montecito mortgage is paid off and they added another bathroom plus redid all their existing bathrooms hahahaha
This is Meghan. She will donate all money over her attorneys’ fees to a charity that supports abused women, I will bet anything.
I think she will give money to anti bullying campaigns and also organisations which investigate fake trolling accounts.
so do I but I am satisfied to know this is over……Meghan has very little ties with the UK except with the wonderful ladies of Al Manaar, SmartWorks and Mayhem. She can always talk to those….the rest, there is no need to even acknowledge their existence.
^^ Yes, very true. But LOL, that’s The Mayhew, not Mayhem, although maybe there is a bit of mayhem involved in trying to rescue and take care of a slew of needy, unwanted dogs, cats, etc. 😉
I love the work of The Mayhew, SmartWorks, and the lovely women of Al Manaar, serving their neighbors and family members through the Hubb Community Kitchen and other ventures! Meg has been their supporter and their lasting inspiration, as she is for so many people and organizations around the world.
it is a typo….indeed, I meant to write Mayhew. LOL
Mayhem works too 🙂 🙂 🙂
Congrats to Meghan for having the strength and determination to see this through. Looks like there may have been some negotiation in the settlement – no apology, teeny font on the front page and terse statement on page 3, but it’s done.
I thought the Judge set forth the wording as well as the font and type size for this acknowledgment (I won’t call it an “apology” as they did NOT apologize in any way).
I don’t know about this case, but many times two sides will present a negotiated agreement and then the judge will rule that the agreement will happen.
Yes, the Judge decided on the font size, the Dailyfail apologies means diddly squat, they had to admit they breach her copyright and they did.
No, this case won’t make a *big* dent in the Fail’s finances, which are, of course, separate and apart from whatever billions Rothermere can claim, BUT, now that other victims can see that they can successfully pursue these claims against tabloids for breaches of copyright and privacy and their legal fees covered as part of the consequences, there may be more. I’d love to see it.
The privacy part is only £1. That will only encourage the tabloids to continue this horrible behavior.
Is that really the amount? I thought it was a typo. One pound? Can’t even buy a loaf of bread with that.
Yeah, the privacy “damages” are nominal, but the legal fees for it are hefty. It’s often the legal fees that are the obstacle to claimants bringing an action forward.
Damages are notoriously difficult to prove in these kinds of claims, but legal fees could be a significant deterrent.
I hope she buys nice stuff for herself with that money. They made so much money defaming her.
I imagine that whatever is left over after paying legal fees will be donated to a charity.
I agree. I want her to get something VERY nice. Donating to charity is noble but its her reputation that was muddied and she deserves every penny for the mental anguish alone.
I think the reputation Meghan cares about is being known as a generous person who donates to support causes she believes in. Being able to donate the settlement amount will further solidify that. So I think its a win that goes beyond the actual dollar amount.
Or pays off a part of the mortgage.
Exactly. She has a mortgage to pay for as well as security costs. Her money to spend her way.
I think she will donate the money….anyway she can do whatever she wants with that money. Most importantly she made a strong, very strong point to the trash that’s the dm and the failures/mediocre people that live at KP
I would LOVE to know the amount. It’s definitely in the millions. My only question is, is it a 7 or 8 figure sum?
I wonder how they will use the money? Pay off the Montecito estate? Seed money for future lawsuits? Donate to the charities and organizations that is fighting online misinformation and hate for profit?
I am still quite lost as in the £1 for breach of privacy plus lawyers fees means she doesn’t get much for all the headaches she has had to put up with
She gets money for the copyright portion. That is the “undisclosed settlement amount”.
I should have read further before commenting above. I agree, the token privacy payment is a bad sign. It will only encourage them. Ex. the petulant lashing out and publishing photos of her shopping three days after this legal agreement was determined.
She has also agreed damages for the copyright claim. The sum will not be published. The breach of copyright was always the main legal issue and the Fail never had a credible defence. Invasion of privacy came from the breach of copyright. They mounted a spurious defence in order to profit from the publicity.
The fact that William and the Palace goons assisted the Fail is now a huge PR problem for the RF.
I do think that naming the MoS’ owner was a good move by Meghan. It probably did prompt Lord Rothermere to call up his lawyers to settle the case as soon as possible. Good for Meghan. This case is finally over. It should not have taken so long but Meghan won and that’s the most important thing.
I think so too, good move.
Exactly. Meghan was firing a warning shot. Two can play at the game of public humiliation. There are specific individuals behind the facade of the gutter press.
Yes, and how quickly they responded to settling the case once Meghan pulled away the mask on Lord Rothermere! See how he likes a little public humiliation, as he certainly deserves it, and more!!
I am just glad it’s over. Meghan has been dealing with this lawsuit for over 3 years. The daily stress of having this hang over your head, on top of everything else she and Harry were experiencing, must have been extremely difficult. But Meghan has proven to not only MoS, but also to other the gutter rags that she isn’t afraid of them. In fact, it should be the other way around. As for what she does with her settlement, it’s no ones business but hers and Harry’s. We can all speculate but it just feeds into the unrelenting desire to know everything that Harry and Meghan are doing. We should just celebrate that Meghan won and they lost!!
But it hasn’t changed their behaviors, obviously as they were stalking her in LA when she went out once! They are certainly not shy about being aggressive in stalking her or trying to create capture pictures of her when she pops out for a moment. They will never give up their golden goose and they will never question their actions in gaining as much on Meghan as possible, no matter how it’s being discovered. They are literally worse than rats, in that they have NO morals or code of ethics. All of them.
Yep, agree. Name checking Rothermere was a good move. As the saying goes, a fish rots from the head down. Lord Rotsmore likes to claim(or others like to claim for him) he’s a hands off owner. My wild guess is that Harry knows differently. When Meghan, Duchess of Sussex put out her statement, I wondered if it was Harry’s suggestion to insert Rotsmore’s name. People/BM always seem to forget what Harry knows and that he has over 3 decades of knowledge/experience of how things work with the BM.imo
Whichever palace was involved (KP), they were not happy that Meghan & Harry chose to pursue this lawsuit and retained lawyers outside the palace walls. Diana, from above, gave her thumbs up. The same day (Dec. 2nd) that the appeal results came out, so did this. (I don’t know where things stand now).
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-12-02/rothermere-pushes-new-daily-mail-takeover-offer-after-opposition
The BM will always write about Meghan/Harry (the others don’t generate much interest). They really need to try to keep themselves in check. Richard Eden really crossed some lines today. Hoping some complaints were made to IPSO. A poster here called it in a different thread about the intruder at Windsor. Eden, who apparently doesn’t have access to news articles from the past, and as a royal commentator isn’t aware of previous intruders to palace properties, is blaming H & M. That guy really needs to be called out for his BS. I can reveal he is a racist, lying d*ck who gets off on misinformation about H & M and falsification(and embiggening) of charity $ donated and personal attributes of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their Royal Foundation.
@ Agreatreckoning, thanks for the link. Interesting read, I might add too!! Lord Rothermere should be called Lord Rotherrat, as he is apparently a man who will sink to levels equivalent to those of rats to steal and bully his way into what he wants, with no moral compassion.
The last paragraph in the Byline article is exactly what I’ve been trying to tell people who say “this isn’t going to affect anything the Mail does or their bottom line”. No it won’t but this is a massive ego bruising for the Mail that they lost to Meghan.
The next battle will be the assessment of the profit made by #dailyFAIL on the publication of the letter over the period tht it was in the paper & online. M’s settlement will be a percentage of said profit. Anyhooo, I know both sides will deploy the best & brightest accountants. Charities in various countries that’s supported by H&M can look forward to a windfall some time this year.
It sounds like that part’s already been done, the “undisclosed amount” in settlement is presumably the outcome of that process.
Windyriver is correct.
I do hope that the settlement is in the millions because she deserves every single cent and more. I wonder how and if this will affect Jason Knauf and his trash-a**?
glad she didn’t back down despite a loud minority’s doubt that she’d be successful. she went through hell but made it through with her life, family and career intact. losing her father along the way was a blessing in disguise imo.
There will always be that concern troll faction wringing their hands every time Megan or Harry stand up for themselves or set boundaries. Good for the Sussexes for not listening.
It explains why they acted out and published photos of her shopping on 17 December.
H&M made a principled statement from the moment this case was filed, tht if they won, the money wd go to charity. It is not money tht they want for themselves. As they’ve done with other settlements they’ve won to date: their costs (incl legal fees) are deducted & the bal goes to charity.
Monies from Brit shidtrags & pap agengies is filthy lucre and not for H&M’s personal use.
Agree. It will have more of an impact to donate to worthy anti- bullying charities and to combat misinformation. Hope it’s very public once they get the settlement.
She has a name, they should have had to say Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex. This btw is not an apology, it’s an acknowledgment that she won. They won’t apologize because they don’t think abusing, smearing and attacking a woman of color deserves an apology. In my fantasy, Meghan cost them so much money that she ends up owning the bulk share of that trash tabloid and then she shuts it down because tabloids are bad for your health
Actually they should say HRH Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex.
I imagine it might a large amount. If it were a trifling amount, they would be bragging about it?
I stan a strong woman, a woman of substance who has the guts and backbone to stand up to these media bullies and take them on and WIN. Bravo Meghan. And although it was not an apology it was a public humiliation with the Sussex Squad making the Fail statement trend worldwide.
That was the beauty out of this ugliness, wasn’t it? The Sussex Squad certainly deserve a few 👏👏 due to their due diligence. They lit a fire that spread far and wide, from one country to the next to applaud Meghan and her victory!! It was glorious to see all of the countries that came out IN support of Meghan!! Poland, Mexico, and Thailand, just to name a few. It must feel good to Meghan to see that she has worldwide support. Everyone saw what the RF, the Lambridges, the morning talk show hosts and the general public we’re doing to her. Hell, even women in Britain were speaking up and speaking out against what the dialogue has been towards Meghan since she arrived on Salty Island of Racism and Petty.
I think Meghan is glad that this tedious lawsuit is over.
So far there no leaks since she left the island, they both have jobs, two healthy children, dogs and chickens.
No courtiers spying on them.
Thomas Markle lost big time, nothing new to sell, since he is of no use to the BM, he will be discarded like the trash he is. Scammy seems to crawled back under the rock she emerged from, Jr. is most likely broke again having spent the Money he made from the show in Australia, on drugs and alcohol.
Tom will be ignored and it will serve him right. He was used by the media and it won’t be a permanent arrangement.
^^ On the not-so-down-low, TMarkle was used by members of the firm too. Knauf was assuredly the silent go-between. It’s only Will’s status and the current raggedy, yet still mostly respected status of the British monarchy that is keeping KP’s and Willileaks’ nefarious dealings with the sperm donor under wraps.
Of course, Knauf and Will have showed their hands a bit too openly with the false bullying claims and with Knauf willingly (pun intended) handing over the texts and emails to the Fail in order to support the tabloid’s efforts to trash Meghan and hamper her case. It’s such great karmic turnaround that the texts and emails only further strengthened Meg’s case. LOL!
I think Lord AFRO Rothy mom step out on his dad.
My dearest wish is that the Sussexes immediately announce a large $$$ donation to one of their causes with the proceeds – that wouldn’t necessarily be disclosing the exact amount the mail paid, right?
Personally, I would sponsor an ongoing scholarship for BIPOC journalism and media students “inspired and funded by” the recent case against the daily fail, but I’m super petty like that.
My dearest wish is that she keeps every single penny for herself and her little family.
@Jay….totally agree with u. H&M should name the charities tht will benefit directly from the damages received from this lawsuit & the amts allocated to them. Tht wd be a win-win i:e it wd give us an idea of the size of the payout while honoring any NDA.
I don’t know how they ever thought they could be so blatantly unlawful and she wouldn’t sue them for it and make them pay. Meghan is an American. We are a litigious people.
Well as the Byline article said, any first year journalist student would have known the Mail was breaking the law & the editor only went ahead because he assumed Meghan wouldn’t sue. I think meghans lawyers said the letter being published was like the last straw because remember at that point apart from all the nasty rift& insider stories, having the Markles on weekly, the Times had published some of the images a helicopter had taken of the Cotswold home. Pretty sure that kind of invasive coverage was unprecedented for a royal & in the so called paper of record.
Clearly the royal family had made clear to the press that Meghan was fair game & the press could do what they want towards her as she wasn’t protected. That’s why the Mail thought they could overstep and even their salacious headlines for when they published the letter actually damaged their case.
It’s been said that the firm’s lawyers told Meghan not to sue which couldn’t have been because of the legal merits because she won decisively. So there were some shady behaviour BTS the palace probably didn’t want exposed. Knowing now how duplicitous Jason was, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Mail knew that meghan had written to her father well before they published the letter.
It also makes sense that once it became clear that Meghan wasn’t being protected by the palace, her friends went to People anonymously to try set things straight. They were probably doing as they were told (remember Jason Knauf told a Mail editor that Meghan’s friends wouldn’t try to intervene again after an article from Meghan’s ex agent) & keeping quiet until then.
^^ + 1,000! This is a great rundown of the ins-and-outs, and the whys and wherefores of how this all got started.
Because the Palace most likely assured them there would be no legal action. Just like Knauf told a tabloid editor that nobody close to Meghan would come forward to refute their crazy stories.
Yup. Knauf and Co. underestimated Meghan big time. It really all comes back to the sad little bubble those people are in, where so many in the BRF are so beholden to the entity and desperate to stay inside that they will put up with all sorts of indignities and harassment in order to do so. I would have loved to have seen everyone’s faces when Harry was like “sorry, we’re out.”
@Plums … if you have a few, please read this article https://bylineinvestigates.com/2021/12/28/the-duchess-and-the-tabloid-the-mail-admits-its-beaten/
@Plums said:
“Meghan is an American. We are a litigious people.”
It’s not just that though. Meghan told us in the NYT Dealbook interview that she’s always been guided to do what she knows is right! It has been a fight of huge proportions; of good against evil. Seeing that photo of Rothymothy’s grandpa standing next to evil incarnate gives us a clue of the high stakes involved all along.
They all disregarded Meghan. They had no idea who they were dealing with. They were up against Jeanette and Doria Ragland’s Flower! Meghan is not ‘Tungsten,’ the name Charles gave her as a go-ahead for the BM to continue their attacks. Nope, Meghan is kind and strong, but not invulnerable. She’s not the caricature of a strong, angry ‘made of steel’ black woman which they want the public to believe, so that we forget how they piled on and attacked her when she was pregnant and at the most vulnerable stage of her life.
Rachel Meghan ‘Flower’ Markle was raised by two independent, strong-willed and exceedingly kind black matriarchs who taught their daughter/ granddaughter right from wrong, and much of everything she knows. They instilled in her the strong faith that sustains and guides her. They gave her wings to fly. Meghan’s wings and her huge wingspan could not be clipped nor boxed in by the racist British attitudes of uppity colonizers. But that does not make her ‘Tungsten’ to be scarred, abused and cast aside.
Meghan did not hold steadfast to her beliefs because of a litigious American society. She just knows right from wrong, and her ‘faith is stronger than her fear.’ She also realizes that this case is bigger than what has been done to her alone. As usual, Meghan was fighting not only for herself, but for those who don’t have the resources or stature or amount of support needed to fight back against such evil cruelty.
@Kaiser, the DM/Associated doesn’t have to pay all of Meghan’s legal fees, but they do have to pay a hefty 90%. The Byline article references this when they note “Associated will also shoulder most of the Duchess’s legal costs”.
As part of the original judgement they were ordered to make the payment of 450,000 pounds; I wondered if they’d had to pay it, or if it was delayed by the appeal. Looks like they did have to pay out at the time, and now another $300,000 pounds is due – and that’s just for legal fees. And it looks like Byline anticipates her total legal costs will be in the neighborhood of 1.5 million, or twice what they’ve already been ordered to pay (and possibly more).
I don’t care how rich this guy is, this whole thing has to sting – especially since, as Byline previously noted, Justice Warby in his former life was an attorney FOR the DM (represented them when Charles brought his suit). So undoubtedly he knows plenty about how they work BTS. Ouch.
If there is an afterlife I bet Diana is cheering these two on for fighting the newspapers that treated her so terribly.
These lawsuits could probably keep Archewell going without any other donations at this rate 😂
How can prince Charles write articles for tabloids that treat his OWN son so horribly? he might have cared about Diana or Meghan but his own SON and grandkids? does Charles even have a heart or a conscience? how can H ever talk to him or W again? after what W allowed with J. Knauf? my goodness….people talk about Meghan losing her father; H most likely would only be civil to his brother and father from now on! I don’t know how he can ever trust any of them ever again!
I meant to write “he might NOT have cared about Diana or Meghan but his own SON and grandkids?”
Harry, Meghan and their children are part of Charles’ family, but Charles let william plot against his brother A father should be protective of his family, the whole family .
Toxic Tom played a big role in this mess. He voluntarily handed over the letter to the Fail and had a say what parts of the letter was published. He agreed to testify against Meghan. Since this clown helped breached the privacy part of the settlement could be the Markles are thrown off the tabloid money train: no more paid interviews for Bad Dad, Scammy and Jr. for them on ANY of ANL’s platforms to slag on Harry and Meghan and bringing their children into this. That would be worth a fortune to make these vampires pay for the harm they caused.
I want her to spend her settlement however she wishes, but I hope she donates a very specific amount so we know it was from the MoS. Like gifting, say, 2.135 million to a journalism school or privacy group. Really drive the point home without breaking the NDA.
The DM agreed to pay on 14th December,
H&M made donations on 23th December with their beautiful happy holiday card to several organisations.
The organisations didnt disclose how much many they received.
We didn’t have to know what she did with the money. Its hers.
But i hope she save some as retainer for the lawyer so that she can sue everytime the DM print false story about her.
I keep thinking that this entire situation will reflect poorly on the BM and the RF for years to come. As the Cambridge kids grow up, they will suspect, and then likely learn about all that went down, especially as they begin to face their own battles with the tabloids. If the world continues to grow more just and more equitable (not guaranteed of course, but I don’t think we can survive long as a species without forward progress), then this whole situation will look more and more outrageous and egregious as time goes on. We look now at pictures of high school kids integrating schools while being threatened by angry mobs in the 1950s, or the one that really breaks my heart, the image of 6 year old Ruby Bridges trying to go to 1st grade, and in the US, there’s collective shame and embarrassment. I’m not comparing tragic situations here—I’m not equating Meghans experience with the brutality of integration in US schools, but what Meghan experienced is, in principle, what happens when POC enter previously all white “exalted” spaces—the only difference in each situation is the degree to which the POC is mistreated. That mistreatment will happen is pretty much a fact. The royal family, and the media, is on the wrong side of history here. They are the villains in the story. So long as Meghan and Harry continue to work and thrive as a family, the more people who normally don’t pay attention to royal life will wonder why they reacted the way they did. What was the motive? Who gained and lost?
I thought Lainey made an excellent point today. The royals MO is to appease the tabloids, give them access, jump through their hoops. Meghan fought back on her own, without the royal family, against the wishes of the royal family, and won. That makes the royals look impotent and weak. They are worth billions of dollars, and they are owned by a bunch of ratchet reporters and a couple of newspapers. That has to burn. Not only does Meghans lack of interest damage their image as aspirational arbiters of class, culture, and success. Her victory over the same tabloids they kowtow to makes them look foolish and ineffectual.
I will laugh my ass off if a Kates cuties calendar is published this year. The Tabloids might as well rename that picture show “We OWN those silly bitches!”
Bad, bad look. Mr incandescent can probably light all of Kensington Palace off his rage.
+1 ….good point!
I have been saying the same thing; how come Charles writes for the dailyFail and claims he trusts them? how come the rf can’t say F**K you to those trashy tabloids? I will never get it
Allowing trashy people to cover them, guess what they think, convey their thoughts? H&M showed them the way. if they collectively say No to those trashy people, they will all be free….what would the tabloids do? publish their dirty laundry and so what? aren’t we constantly told how no one in the UK read or believe those tabloids?
^^ It’s because the tabs do own the BRF. The tabloids have a lot of leverage over Charles and Will due to years of behind-the-scenes, tit-for-tat briefing. There’s even a documentary in which a former royal reporter, Judy Wade, clearly states that palace p.r. had to protect Will as heir-to-the-throne, and cover up his youthful misdeeds by throwing Harry under the bus to take the fall for both Will’s mistakes and his own mistakes. Upshot: Harry learned from his mistakes and the BM have no leverage over him. LOL!
Meanwhile, the tabloids have an archive of leverage over TOB! In the process, Will has only learned that Harry was there as the spare and scapegoat to take the fall for him in perpetuity… Ooops!
@lanne said:
“… what Meghan experienced is, in principle, what happens when POC enter previously all white ‘exalted’ spaces—the only difference in each situation is the degree to which the POC is mistreated… The royal family, and the media, is on the wrong side of history here.”
Very true. This exact phenomenon is beautifully explained in an article by Royal Suitor (R.S. Locke) on Medium:
https://royalsuitor.medium.com/will-the-house-of-windsor-turn-into-a-house-of-cards-d344db7076d9
“A biracial woman enters the top of the pyramid [of the British class system] by marriage, negating both the birth and blood requirements society had previously been told were preconditions… when she leaves with her husband… it calls into question whether the pyramid’s peak is still something to aspire to?”
M&H thriving outside the BRF, coupled with Meghan’s court victories are serving to further topple the ‘Windsor House of Cards,’ and to call into question British systemic racism, and thousands of years of British upper-class snobbery.
This baffles me and others-A royal family with the money and prestige they have-lay down for shitstain tabloids and shake like a bowl of jello when they call-this baffles me -the royal family suppose to be this almighty machinery over all beings and things-but will shit their pants if the tabloids mention anything negative-they crawl on their hands knees to please the tabloids.