Who Is The Former Aide Giving Evidence Against Meghan Markle?
When Meghan Markle won the lawsuit in May against a British tabloid for publishing a heartfelt letter she sent to her estranged father in 2018, per the BBC, she — and all of us — might have believed that was the end of it. But, as it turns out, the drama involving the royal family seems to be nowhere close to easing off. The case brought by the Duchess of Sussex against the publisher of the Mail on Sunday and MailOnline, Associated Newspapers Limited (ANL), centered on the issue of privacy and copyright ownership.
As the BBC explained, the newspaper argued that Meghan was not the sole owner of the letter because an aide, Jason Knauf, helped her write it. According to the argument, since an employee was the co-author of the material, the letter was owned by the Crown, the report detailed. However, in court proceedings, Knauf denied being involved and emphasized that "it was the duchess's letter alone," a statement that played a key role in the judge's ruling in favor of Meghan, according to the BBC.
But Knauf recanted his position as part of ANL's appeal proceedings, which came to light in November, according to The Guardian. In his witness statement, Knauf said he helped shape the contents of the letter and claimed Meghan "asked me to review [it], saying, 'Obviously, everything I have drafted is with the understanding that it could be leaked.'" And like that, Knauf went from trusted aide to key witness against Meghan.
Meghan Markle and Jason Knauf previously had a falling-out
Jason Knauf joined the Kensington Palace roster in 2015 when he became the communications secretary for Prince William and his wife, Kate Middleton, according to The Sun. When Prince Harry married Meghan Markle and they became the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Knauf went on to serve the same position for the newlyweds, the report detailed. Knauf, who is American and hails from Texas, according to Page Six, became a close adviser to whom Meghan and Harry often turned for all things related to their relationship with the public — and even with family members, as was reportedly the case with the letter she sent to her father in August 2018.
In March, the Times of London publicly identified Knauf as the staffer who filed an October 2018 complaint to HR against Meghan accusing her of bullying two personal assistants out the door and humiliating a third, two months after she sent the letter. A month after, Knauf resigned as the Sussexes' communications chief, but was reassigned as adviser for William and Kate in March 2019, according to The Sun. He later became CEO of the Cambridges' Royal Foundation, though Knauf is set to step down for personal reasons this year.
Before he began working for the British royal family, Knauf worked for the Royal Bank of Scotland and British Treasury, according to Page Six. Between 2007 and 2008, he served as press secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand.