London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Aug 01, 2025

Meghan admits aide gave biography authors information with her knowledge

Meghan admits aide gave biography authors information with her knowledge

Duchess of Sussex apologises for misleading court, stating she forgot she had authorised PR chief to brief Finding Freedom authors
The Duchess of Sussex has apologised in court for failing to remember authorising a senior aide to brief the authors of her and Harry’s unofficial biography.

Meghan submitted a statement to the court in which she said she could not remember emails between her and her then press secretary, Jason Knauf, about the unauthorised book.

It came as the court of appeal heard that the royal couple’s former communications secretary provided information to the Finding Freedom authors, Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand. Knauf said in a witness statement that the book was “discussed on a routine basis”, which was “discussed directly with the duchess multiple times in person and over email”.

He also discussed meeting the authors to provide background information for the book and claimed Meghan provided him with several briefing points to share with them.

Knauf claims to have emailed Meghan’s husband, Prince Harry, about the meeting, to which the duke replied: “I totally agree that we have to be able to say we didn’t have anything to do with it. Equally, you giving the right context and background to them would help get some truths out there.”

Meghan apologised for misleading the court over whether Knauf provided information to the book’s authors in a witness statement released on Wednesday.

She said: “I accept that Mr Knauf did provide some information to the authors for the book and that he did so with my knowledge, for a meeting that he planned for with the authors in his capacity as communications secretary. The extent of the information he shared is unknown to me.

“When I approved the passage … I did not have the benefit of seeing these emails and I apologise to the court for the fact that I had not remembered these exchanges at the time. I had absolutely no wish or intention to mislead the defendant or the court.”

She added that she would have been “more than happy” to refer to the exchanges with Knauf if she had been aware of them at the time, adding they were “a far cry from the very detailed personal information that the defendant alleges that I wanted or permitted to put into the public domain”.

The Duchess successfully sued the publisher of the Mail on Sunday, Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), over five articles that published parts of a “personal and private” letter sent to her father, Thomas Markle, in August 2018.

The high court ruled that the letter was unlawful and therefore avoided the need for a trial but ANL is challenging that ruling, arguing the case should go to a trial on Meghan’s claims including breach of privacy and copyright.

ANL’s lawyer, Andrew Caldecott, told judges that correspondence between Meghan and Knauf shows the duchess suspected her father might leak the letter to journalists, the Associated Press reported. Caldecott said the letter was “crafted with readership by the public in mind” and Meghan “was happy for the public to read if it Mr Markle were to leak it”.

He quoted from a witness statement in which Knauf said the duchess “asked me to review the text of the letter, saying, ‘Obviously, everything I have drafted is with the understanding that it could be leaked.’”

Knauf said Meghan asked whether she should address her father in the letter as “daddy”, adding that “in the unfortunate event that it leaked, it would pull at the heartstrings”.

In her own written evidence, the duchess said she had not believed that her father “would sell or leak the letter, primarily because it would not put him in a good light”.

“To be clear, I did not want any of it to be published, and wanted to ensure that the risk of it being manipulated or misleadingly edited was minimised, were it to be exploited,” she said.

The appeal hearing is scheduled to last until Thursday, with a ruling due at a later date.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
×