Another naked royal is in the news as Kate Middleton is getting a taste of the downside of being a duchess.
French gossip magazine "Closer" fired the first salvo, publishing photos of Kate sunbathing topless while on vacation with William in southern France.
The blurry photos were shot at a distance by an unnamed photographer, with Closer breaching an unspoken agreement that most publications have with the Royal family to not pursue or publish such photos.
Condemnation of the photos and threats of legal action were immediate but it didn't stop the photos (including additional ones) from appearing in more places.
The Italian publication "Chi" ran the photos as well as the Irish newspaper "Independent Star."
While some UK publications ran naked photos of Prince Harry during a recent Vegas romp, the argument for doing so was that they spoke to poor security on his behalf and raised questions regarding his judgment and ability to rule.
The topless photos of the Duchess of Cambridge, however, were only published as sensationalist fodder to sell more copies, raising uncomfortable echoes of Princess Diana.
A French court has backed the royals by ordering "Closer" to hand over all copies of the photos and face daily fines of €10,000 until it does so.
Maximum damages under French law are €50,000, however, raising the possibility that the maagzine will simply pay the fines and continue to sell copies to more than make up the cost.
The Royals and their army of lawyers are also targeting the as-yet unnamed photographer and have filed a criminal complaint against the mystery man or woman designed to stop the photos from spreading to other publications.
The photos were taken while the couple relaxed at a private villa in France which was surrounded by a park and located several hundred meters from the closest road -- factors the French court weighed when ruling that their reasonable expectation of privacy was wrongfully breached.
