Washington [US]: The Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle on Thursday won a privacy claim in her case against a tabloid newspaper that published a handwritten letter to her estranged father Thomas Markle.
Meghan had sued a newspaper publisher Associated Newspapers Limited after the group's tabloid The Mail had printed portions of a handwritten letter that she had sent to her father in 2018, reported CNN.
The judge ruled that "the disclosures were manifestly excessive and hence unlawful," and that there would be "no prospect that a different judgment would be reached after a trial." "She enjoyed a reasonable expectation that the contents would remain private and not be published to the world at large by a national newspaper; the defendant's conduct in publishing the contents of the letter was a misuse of her private information," Justice Mark Warby wrote.
The publisher and tabloid had previously stood by their decision to publish excerpts from the letter and promised to defend the case vigorously.
According to CNN, Meghan welcomed the ruling in a statement that was scathingly critical of the tabloid.
"After two long years of pursuing litigation, I am grateful to the courts for holding Associated Newspapers and The Mail on Sunday to account for their illegal and dehumanizing practices," she said.
"For these outlets, it's a game. For me and so many others, it's real life, real relationships, and very real sadness. The damage they have done and continue to do runs deep," she added.
The Duchess also thanked her legal team, family and supporters.
"We all lose when misinformation sells more than truth, when moral exploitation sells more than decency, and when companies create their business model to profit from people's pain. But for today, with this comprehensive win on both privacy and copyright, we have all won," she said.
CNN reported that though Meghan claimed a wide-ranging victory, some issues pertaining to the copyright case and damages for that case are still expected to go to trial later this year.
According to the contentious publication, Meghan had complained to her father that he had ignored many of her attempts to make contact.
Meghan is seeking damages for misuse of private information, copyright infringement, and breach of the Data Protection Act 2018.
Meanwhile, Meghan's husband settled a separate legal dispute with the Mail earlier this month, accepting what his legal team called "significant damages" over an article alleging he had turned his back on the Royal Marines, reported CNN.
