Meghan Markle to face legal challenge from sister Samantha Markle in Florida court

A new court date has been scheduled in the ongoing legal dispute between Meghan Markle and her half-sister Samantha Markle. 

Oral arguments are set to begin on September 9, 2025, at 9 a.m. local time in Jacksonville, Florida, according to a recent court filing seen by the Express.

Samantha Markle, 60, initially filed a libel lawsuit against the Duchess of Sussex in 2022, citing statements made during Meghan and Prince Harry’s 2021 interview with Oprah Winfrey and their Netflix docuseries, Harry & Meghan. 

Samantha claims the remarks unfairly damaged her reputation.

While Meghan previously won dismissal of the case in March 2024, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeal in Atlanta agreed to hear an appeal, setting the stage for a potential courtroom showdown this fall.

Samantha alleges that Meghan’s characterization of herself as “an only child” and other related statements implied that Samantha played a role in online hate campaigns against the Duchess. 

Meghan did not explicitly name Samantha in those remarks.

Meghan’s legal team maintains that her comments were protected under the First Amendment and amount to personal opinion, not defamation. 

In a past court filing, her lawyers said the case merited “the minimum attention necessary, which is all it deserves.”

The half-sisters have long been estranged. Samantha and their brother Thomas Markle Jr. are children of Thomas Markle Sr., who has also been publicly critical of Meghan in recent years.

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