Prince Harry, Meghan Markle urged to sue over leaked dinner photos with Princess Eugenie

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may have another legal fight in their hands if they decide to sue the paparazzi over the photos taken during their dinner date with Princess Eugenie and Jack Brooksbank.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex enjoyed a quiet and happy evening with the princess and her husband two Sundays ago at a local restaurant in Montecito, Santa Barbara, California. They were pictured dining at a covered-up patio with plastic sheets surrounding them to abide by social distancing measures amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

TMZ leaked the pictures of the happy group although there were some speculations that Meghan Markle may have staged the shots for publicity. Royal watchers in the U.K. even accused her of trying to upstage Kate Middleton with the release of the photos coincidentally timed with the latter's arrival in Denmark for her first solo royal visit since the pandemic.

However, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex can try to correct these assumptions if they pursue legal action. Mark Stephens, a media law specialist at Howard Kennedy, said that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle could sue for privacy.

He likened it to English musician Paul Weller, who sued the Associated Press in 2012 after pictures of him dining out with his children were plastered on the Daily Mail. He filed the suit under British privacy laws although the pictures were taken in the U.S.A.

Stephens told Newsweek, "They can sue. There was a case where Paul Weller sued. He was sitting outside a restaurant in Santa Monica with his children and he sued for privacy in the UK."

He added, "They'll sue whoever published them in the U.K., that's for sure. I don't know whether they can get TMZ here, but it will be worth a go."

However, Professor Tim Luckhurst, principal of South College at Durham University, doubts that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle will win if they do decide to sue for the leaked dinner photos with Princess Eugenie and Brooksbank. It may be intrusive but the group may not have actually sought privacy because they opted to dine where the screens around them were transparent.