On Friday, it was revealed that the lawyers for the Mail on Sunday had hit the Duchess of Sussex with another round of queries, and she had responded to them in yet another legal filing. This is the fourth round of questions from the Mail’s lawyers, and Meghan and her team understand what’s happening: the Mail is using Meghan’s lawsuit to dig and create content for themselves. It’s not simply that the Mail cannot be a fair arbiter of what’s happening in the case where Meghan is suing them, it’s that they’re actively using her lawsuit to smear her further, using information gleaned from legal filings. Omid Scobie spoke to a source close to Meghan, who said that the Mail is “abusing the court process to use irrelevant personal details for ‘exclusives.’ A fourth request for additional evidence and clarification is unprecedented and has no legal necessity. [The Duchess] is not on trial, her friends are not on trial, the Duchess’s father is not on trial. The Mail on Sunday and its unlawful actions are.” Here’s what else happened:
Meghan used to be close to her father: She and Thomas Markle “had a very close father/daughter relationship throughout her childhood and remained close until he was targeted three years ago by intrusive UK tabloid media”. The statement also revealed that Meghan had been providing financial support to her father and had a “long-standing history of caring for her [his] health”. Meghan’s lawyer said she had been giving her father money after she embarked on a career as an actor on the US legal drama Suits. As the statement put it “she began making voluntary financial contributions to her father”.
When she stopped giving her father money: The documents from Meghan’s lawyers show she has been a dutiful daughter, concerned for her father’s health and wellbeing both medically and financially. She began aiding him financially in January 2014, after she become a successful actress on the television show Suits, and stopped in May 2018 when she married Prince Harry.
Thomas Markle did not pay for all of Meghan’s university education: “Mr. Markle did not pay for all of the Claimant’s college tuition. The Claimant’s mother also contributed toward her university costs. In addition, the Claimant received scholarships for academic achievement, which reduced the payable tuition fees,” the filing states. “The Claimant also undertook a work-study program whereby income she made from working on campus after class was applied directly to supplement and lower her tuition costs, thus personally contributing to her tuition as well.”
What Meghan really thinks about the Mail & their lawyers: “We believe the Mail is no longer using the litigation process for its defense and is fixated on trying to cause more harm through headline generation. It highlights the fact they are focused on dragging this process out, and are abusing the court process to use irrelevant personal details for ‘exclusives’ prior to trial in order to hide their unlawful actions and distract from the matter at the heart of this case.”
[From Elle & The Independent]
In the part of the statement about her father, Meghan said that she and Thomas had “a very close father/daughter relationship throughout her childhood and remained close until he was targeted three years ago by intrusive UK tabloid media.” Which I get as a legal argument, but also… it takes two to tango, and it’s not like everything that happened with Toxic Tom is solely the fault of an overzealous and racist media, although they definitely played a major role. I think Meghan has tried to tell herself that her dad would never choose to sell her out, that he’s a pathetic old man who was manipulated by ruthless individuals. I don’t believe that. I think he willfully chose to sell out Meghan over and over. I think he’s just a toxic, awful person and her marriage to Harry brought out the worst in him. It really is that simple.
As for the college costs… I never believed that Toxic Tom paid solely for Meghan’s education, despite what he claimed. And even if he did, who cares? Many divorced couples build that into their divorce agreements, that one parent will pay for their children’s education. Even if Thomas had paid for some or most of her college, she still doesn’t “owe” him anything.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Backgrid, ITV.
Source: Read Full Article