Meghan Markle's half-sister refuses to drop defamation claims following case dismissal
Samantha Markle's defamation lawsuit against Meghan Markle was dismissed in March
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Samantha Markle isn't backing down on her claims that her half-sister, the Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle defamed her during an interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2021 and in a documentary series.
Samantha's legal team argued the court didn't analyze the alleged defamatory statements correctly in an appeal brief filed Aug. 2 and obtained by Fox News Digital.
"The analysis for defamation by implication is the meaning and impact of the collective statements, and their careful arrangement which in fact create defamation through implication," the appeal briefing read. "A reasonable person watching the Interview and Series would have readily attributed these statements to Samantha, as many people have and as a result, Samantha faces daily harassment and threats, both online and in real life. Once respected in her small Florida community, Samantha now fears for her safety daily, already having had to move more than once due to the very real threats of violence."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Meghan knew what she was doing, and how to do it," the court documents stated. "She destroyed Samantha publicly and on a global scale. She has made it so Samantha cannot work, or even enjoy the most mundane of activities, like going to the grocery store without constant harassment. All of which stems from the defamatory implications about Samantha which Meghan placed in the world for the sole purpose of destroying her disabled half-sister."
MEGHAN MARKLE SCORES LEGAL VICTORY IN DEFAMATION LAWSUIT BROUGHT BY HALF-SISTER SAMANTHA MARKLE
A judge dismissed the defamation case against Meghan Markle in March. Samantha Markle cannot refile the lawsuit. (AP)
Samantha's defamation lawsuit, originally brought against Meghan in 2022, was dismissed with prejudice by Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell in March. The dismissal with prejudice means Samantha cannot file the claims again.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"[Samantha's] claims will be dismissed with prejudice, as she has failed to identify any statements that could support a claim for defamation or defamation-by-implication by this point, her third try at amending her complaint, in either the book 'Finding Freedom,' the Netflix series ‘Harry & Meghan,’ or [Meghan] and her husband’s hour-long televised CBS Interview," Honeywell wrote in court documents obtained by Fox News Digital. "As such, the Third Amended Complaint will be dismissed, with prejudice."
Samantha Markle sued her half-sister for defamation, claiming Meghan Markle painted her out to be a racist with no connection to the Duchess of Sussex. (7News Spotlight)
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Samantha had claimed she was defamed by Meghan during the Duchess of Sussex's 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey along with the Netflix series "Harry & Meghan."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Meghan made these false claims, which are now believed to be true by the public, making it appear that Samantha is a fame-seeking stranger to Meghan," Samantha's lawyer, Jamie Alan Sasson, previously told Fox News Digital.
Samantha Markle claimed Meghan Markle defamed her with comments made in the 2021 Oprah Winfrey interview. (AP)
Samantha's original lawsuit was dismissed as the judge ruled the comments made during the Oprah interview by Meghan were her opinion about the actress's own childhood.
"As a reasonable listener would understand it, Defendant merely expresses an opinion about her childhood and her relationship with her half-siblings," the judge wrote at the time.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Thus, the Court finds that Defendant’s statement is not objectively verifiable or subject to empirical proof. Plaintiff cannot plausibly disprove Defendant’s opinion of her own childhood."
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However, the royal's half-sister was allowed to file an amended complaint. The claims were brought again in court April 13, 2023.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Oprah Winfrey interviewed Prince Harry and Meghan Markle for a special in 2021 where they revealed their struggles with royal life. (Harpo Productions/Joe Pugliese via Getty Images)
Samantha's legal team insisted Meghan's comments during the interview falsely portrayed the actress as an only child who had no relationship with her half-siblings. Additionally, Samantha emphasized that she didn't change her last name to Markle to "cash in" on the "Suits" actress' fame as Meghan alleged during the 2021 interview.
Samantha and her legal team believed the amended complaint would prove "Meghan has defamed her sister and that the case will… be heard by a jury."
At the time, Samantha's lawyer told Fox News Digital the legal team planned to appeal the dismissal of the amended complaint.
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