MEGHAN Markle and Prince Harry may well face a court challenge if they name the royal who allegedly made a racist comment on the colour of son Archie’s skin.
A top lawyer says it’s time for the Royal Family to “step up” when it comes to dealing with the Sussexes.
It comes after an updated chapter in unauthorised biography Finding Freedom reveals the pair had discussed identifying the person who questioned them before Archie was born.
However, it’s reported they finally opted against doing so.
And Mark Stephens, who represented James Hewitt when allegations of his affair with Diana emerged, told Mail+ the individual could have sued for libel and breach of privacy.
“First of all, the exact words that were said would have to be identified, and the context they were made in. Was it racist or was it just an inquiry?” he said.
And intention would be key to a court when deciding the case.
“The words may have had a racist overtone but were they intended in that way?” he said.
“Essentially what you will find is that the individual, if named, may have been able to sue for libel and breach of privacy if it was a private conversation between two individuals where there was a reasonable expectation of privacy and for the contents of the conversation not to be shared with a third party, the media.”
The Queen has reportedly ordered Palace aides to plan a legal fightback amid Harry and Meghan’s attacks — declaring: “Enough is enough.”
The monarch’s legal team is understood to be consulting libel experts.
And asked how likely a court bid would be, the lawyer said: “The royal approach until very recently has been to never complain and never explain.
“However, they have moved away from that so I do wonder.
“They will have to step up on them at some point, as long as they go uncontroverted some people will believe the truth of them.”
Revelations in the chapter include:
- The royals were ‘quietly pleased’ Meghan was unable to attend Prince Philip’s funeral
- The brothers were heartbroken after the death of their grandfather
- William was ‘furious’ about the Oprah interview
- Harry’s Remembrance Sunday wreath was left in a box because he was ‘no longer a frontline royal’
- Meghan believes the Palace ‘tried to discredit’ her amid accusations over bullying
Meghan made the allegation during the chat with Oprah.
She also claimed the tot wasn’t made a prince after “concerns and conversations” were raised about his complexion.
But when asked to name the person responsible for the comments, she refused – as it would be too “damaging”.
Oprah later confirmed it was neither the Queen nor Prince Philip.
Elsewhere in the newly-released chapter of Finding Freedom, it was claimed that Meghan found the interview “cathartic” and “liberating”.
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However, it left Prince William “furious that private family matters were being discussed in the public domain”, it’s said.
At the time of the allegations, the prince hit back and insisted the Royal Family was “very much not racist”.
Harry is now planning his own upcoming tell-all memoir that will give an “accurate and wholly truthful” account of his life.
An expert previously speculated the Duke may name the royal who made the remark about Archie’s skin colour in his book.
Richard Kay said: “He will surely have to offer an explanation for this most sensational of claims.”
Angela Levin, who wrote a biography on Prince Harry, blasted the couple in an interview with TalkRADIO.
BIOGRAPHER BLASTS SUSSEXES
“I think it’s in appalling bad taste, and it’s awfully sad that this couple, who are supposed to adore each other and are very, very happy that they’ve left, get the adrenaline from attacking,” she said.
“They’re like petulant teenagers grumbling about the most extraordinary things.”
Finding Freedom’s new chapter also contains claims that the Royal Family were “quietly pleased” that Meghan couldn’t make it to Prince Philip’s funeral.
The Duchess was unable to attend the service at Windsor Castle in April as she was pregnant with daughter Lilibet Diana at the time.
The book claims some royals were happy as they “didn’t want a circus” and feared she would “create a spectacle”.
