Samantha Markle's Libel Lawsuit Against Meghan Slammed as 'Unfounded'

Samantha Markle's new libel complaint against Meghan Markle is "unfounded and not grounded in factual evidence," according to a data analyst involved in the case.

The Duchess of Sussex recently won a ruling that her half-sister's defamation lawsuit should be thrown out but with the caveat that an amended version could be resubmitted.

The new case includes allegations tied to Meghan and Prince Harry's Netflix docu-series in which Christopher Bouzy, of data analysis firm Bot Sentinel, was interviewed. Samantha has accused Meghan of defamation not only for her own comments in Harry & Meghan but also for Bouzy's, arguing the duchess approved the show and therefore takes responsibility for his words, too.

"We maintain that the claims in Samantha Markle's complaint are unfounded and not grounded in factual evidence," Bouzy told Newsweek.

A filing by Samantha's lawyers, seen by Newsweek, argued Bouzy "was retained by Meghan for the Series, and in his employ by Meghan," said that "'Samantha Markle was part of the group that was putting out a lot of this disinformation.'"

Bouzy denied any financial relationship with Meghan.

The filing added that: "The Series falsely accused Samantha to be a member of a hate group which was about 'race,' and even used the 'N-Word.'"

The court papers do not suggest Bouzy accused Samantha of personally using the N-word.

Her lawyers also took issue with Bouzy's discussion of Samantha's Twitter account being suspended, stating: "The suspension of her account, which is impliedly due to statements about Meghan, in reality, was a short 'freeze' because of Samantha's endorsement of Ivermectin."

Bouzy told Newsweek: "To be clear, I would like to categorically state that Bot Sentinel does not have any financial relationship with Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex. Neither the couple themselves nor any individual or entity affiliated with them has ever retained our services or engaged in any form of professional collaboration.

"Furthermore, I would like to emphasize that the comments made during my participation in the Netflix documentary about Samantha Markle were strictly based on factual information. My statements were corroborated by Twitter, which confirmed the suspension of Samantha Markle's accounts due to violations of their platform's policies," he said.

"As an organization, we are committed to maintaining our integrity and professionalism. We remain steadfast in upholding the highest standards of ethical conduct and will continue to adhere to our principles despite any unfounded accusations."

Jack Royston is chief royal correspondent for Newsweek, based in London. You can find him on Twitter at @jack_royston and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.

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