Märtha Louise and Durek Verrett defamation lawsuit

Princess Märtha Louise of Norway and her husband, Durek Verrett, have filed a defamation lawsuit in the Los Angeles County Superior Court seeking approximately $80 million (800 million NOK) in damages. The 242-page legal action targets 14 individuals, including Verrett’s former partner, his half-sister Demetria de La Nuit, a former manager, and a former business associate Eric Nies.

The plaintiffs allege a “calculated betrayal of trust,” claiming that defendants used edited audio recordings released out of context to spread false claims. They argue these actions were intended to maximize reputational damage, particularly coinciding with the premiere of the Netflix documentary ‘Rebel Royals: An Unlikely Love Story’. The damages sought include over $30 million for Verrett, over $20 million for the Princess, and over $30 million for Verrett’s company, Ohana Productions LLC.

Court documents have revealed details regarding a past relationship of Verrett’s, noting that a former partner had previously requested the settlement of approximately $12,000 in student debt as a condition for signing a non-disclosure agreement in 2019.

Recent reports indicate a potential error in the legal filing regarding evidence used to prove the early spread of defamatory information. The lawsuit cited posts from the Norwegian forum Kvinneguiden to argue that certain parties had access to information before specific media reports were published. However, investigations suggest these timestamps may have been misinterpreted due to a confusion of time zones between the US and Norway, meaning the forum posts actually appeared after the media reports they were intended to predate.

In Norway, the legal proceedings have sparked discussions regarding the Princess’s royal status. While she currently holds her title without official representative duties, some royal experts have called on King Haakon VIII to strip her of her title due to the ongoing controversies.