Meghan Markle in new courtroom drama as sister demands she be grilled in defamation case

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Meghan Markle and her estranged sister Samantha are in the midst of a bitter legal battle that will later seek £60,000 in damages for defamation

Meghan Markle’s sister wants a judge to order Prince Harry’s wife video grilled by a lawyer

The Duchess of Sussex, who rose to fame as legal counsel Rachel Zane on TV drama Suits, could be questioned for up to seven hours while cameras roll.

The move is the latest twist in a bitter legal battle between siblings Meghan, 40, and Samantha, 57.

It comes days after Meghan filed a 27-page court filing in Tampa, Fla. to dismiss a defamation case brought by Samantha seeking £60,000 in damages.

She claims her reputation was tarnished by comments the Duchess made about her childhood in last year’s TV interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Samantha has also complained about claims in the book Finding Freedom – Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand’s bombastic biography about Meghan’s early days with Harry.

The Duchess later admitted in the High Court in London that the book was written with the help of her friends.

Last night, Samantha’s attorney, Jamie Alan Sasson, told us, “Our intention is to take this case to a grand jury.

“I am confident that we will overcome the request for dismissal. We anticipate beginning testimony in this case within the next six months.”

He said a step could even be taken to demand evidence from Prince Harry, 37, although he could refuse. The attorney said, “I think he would have relevant information.”

Samantha claims she was the victim of false and malicious testimony that subjected her to worldwide humiliation.

She accused Meghan of inventing a “false narrative and fairytale life story”.

If Meghan’s interrogation continues on video, it would be testimony – part of the so-called Discovery process in the US, where 99 out of 100 civil cases are settled out of court before the trial.

Prince Andrew was ready to give up in his fight with sex accuser Virginia Giuffre before settling out of court not to admit liability after strongly denying all of her allegations.

Meghan’s legal team includes high-flying attorneys Ronnie Bitman, who represented dead singer Michael Jackson’s estate, and Michael Kump, who acted for TV reality star Kim Kardashian.

Samantha has until June 3 to submit an answer, which will be reviewed by a US federal judge, who will then decide whether the case can proceed.

Meghan’s lawyers have claimed in her application, filed on May 13, “This is a defamation case without any basis whatsoever.”

Referring to the book at the heart of the case, they added: “The authors of Finding Freedom have made the statements and there are no claims – and there could be – that Meghan wrote this book or its composition and has otherwise controlled processing.”

Samantha and Meghan are half-sisters from the same father, Thomas Markle.