Meghan Markle faces new legal battle as half-sister Samantha heads to court again

Meghan Markle is gearing up for yet another legal bout with her half-sister, Samantha Markle, The Post can confirm.

The Duchess of Sussex emerged victorious in early 2023 after Samantha had sued her in federal court in Florida for allegedly making “demonstrably false and malicious statements” about her to a world audience during a sit-down interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Samantha, 60, filed the $75,000 lawsuit after the “Suits” alum, 44, told Winfrey that she grew up as an only child during her and Prince Harry’s bombshell March 2021 interview.

Samantha, who shares the same dad as the duchess, claimed the comments subjected her to “humiliation and hatred.”  At the time, a judge at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeal in Atlanta, Ga., had scheduled the case for the week commencing August 11.

However, documents obtained by The Post show that the hearing will now take place on September 9 in Jacksonville, Fla.

The Post has reached out to Meghan’s reps for comment.  Prior to her 2023 filing, Samantha, 60, had previously filed her libel lawsuit against Meghan in late 2022 — two years after the Sussexes quit royal life and moved to the US.

At the time, Meghan’s legal team had dismissed her half-sister’s claims, saying they would “give it [the case] the minimum attention necessary, which is all it deserves.”

Their estranged father, Thomas Markle Sr., said in March 2022 that he was willing to testify in Samantha’s case.  Samantha suffered a major blow the following year after a Florida judge dismissed her lawsuit against the As Ever founder, saying Meghan’s remarks were opinions and “not capable of being proved false.”

“As a reasonable listener would understand it, Defendant merely expresses an opinion about her childhood and her relationship with her half-siblings,” US District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell wrote in her order.  Samantha also wanted the former actress to take back allegations she made against the royal family.

Meghan’s lawyer, Michael Kump, however, said Samantha had no grounds to sue for defamation. He added that the former working royal has a right to voice opinions “and even criticize” under the First Amendment.  The estranged half-sisters had been at odds for years before the infamous interview.

Their estranged father, Thomas Markle Sr., said in March 2022 that he was willing to testify in Samantha’s case

Meghan has repeatedly accused Samantha and their father, who earlier this year moved to the Philippines, of selling stories to the British tabloids.  For her part, Samantha has continued to take shots at the duchess and brother-in-law Prince Harry as the couple continues putting out documentaries and memories.

The duo also have a different recollection of their closeness growing up.  Meghan previously asserted that she never had a relationship with Samantha and even said in her 2022 Netflix docuseries, “Harry & Meghan,” that her half-sister has fabricated how close they are.

“I don’t know your middle name. I don’t know your birthday,” she said of Samantha. “You’re telling these people you raised me, and you coined me Princess Pushy? I hadn’t had a fallout with her. We didn’t have a closeness to be able to have that. And I wanted a sister.”  What’s more, the mom of two claimed she was in her early 20s the last time she saw Samantha.