Meghan Markle sued by half-sister over claims made in Oprah tell-all interview

Duchess of Sussex previously told Oprah Winfrey she last saw half-sister 19 years ago

Meghan Markle is being sued for defamation by her half-sister Samantha Markle for allegedly making “false” statements during her sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey last year.

The defamation lawsuit filed by Samantha claims the Duchess of Sussex made several “false and malicious statements” about her childhood, according to documents obtained by TMZ.

Samantha also claims the duchess fabricated a “rags to royalty” narrative when she described growing up in “virtual poverty.” Samantha, who shares father Thomas with Meghan, claims their father paid for the royal’s "elite and expensive private schools”. The duchess has previously said that she worked throughout college to pay for her Northwestern University education.

The two-hour sit down interview with Winfrey aired in the US on 7 March 2021, and was viewed by more than 50m people worldwide. During the conversation, Meghan, alongside her husband Prince Harry, described her relationship with her family to Winfrey and said she was an “only child” and had last seen her half-sister "at least 18, 19 years ago and before that, 10 years before that”.

The 57-year-old author published a tell-all book in January 2021 about her relationship with her half-sister, titled The Diary of Princess Pushy’s Sister Part 1.

In the lawsuit, Samantha says that Meghan’s comments about her have hurt sales of her autobiography, prevented her from getting jobs, and caused emotional and mental distress, according to court documents obtained by TMZ.

Michael Kump, Meghan’s lawyer, responded to the defamation lawsuit in a statement to TMZ. “This baseless and absurd lawsuit is just a continuation of a pattern of disturbing behaviour,” he said. “We will give it the minimum attention necessary, which is all it deserves."

The Independent has contacted a spokesperson for Meghan for comment.