As the new year begins, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are making a quiet but telling shift behind the scenes.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have resumed working with Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis, a high-profile public relations firm they know well. The move signals a fresh phase in how the couple manage their growing mix of business, media, and philanthropic work in the U.S.
It’s a return to familiar ground at a moment when stability appears to matter.
A long-standing relationship revisited
Sunshine Sachs Morgan & Lylis — often referred to as SSML — is now supporting Meghan’s lifestyle brand, As ever, along with the couple’s broader U.S.-based professional efforts.
The firm is working alongside the Sussexes’ internal communications team, including Liam Maguire, who continues as director of communications for the UK and Europe and has largely overseen Prince Harry’s press operations.
For Meghan and Harry, this isn’t a new partnership so much as a renewed one. SSML has worked with the couple on and off since 2017 and previously represented Meghan during her years on Suits. One of the firm’s co-presidents even attended their royal wedding in 2018 — a detail that underscores how personal the relationship has been.
A shift following recent departures
The reunion with SSML comes after a period of notable turnover within the Sussexes’ communications team.
In December 2025, chief communications officer Meredith Maines stepped down after roughly nine months in the role. Her work, alongside Method Communications, had largely focused on Meghan’s public-facing projects and U.S.-based media strategy.
At the time, the couple signaled that another agency would step in to handle American communications support — a role SSML now appears to be filling.
A pattern of change behind the scenes
Maines’ departure was not an isolated one.
In 2024, global press secretary Ashley Hansen left after two years to launch her own consultancy. In 2025, several other communications staffers in both the UK and the U.S. also moved on. Emily Robinson, a former Netflix executive appointed as director of communications, exited the role after just four months.
Most recently, longtime advisor James Holt stepped down as executive director of Archewell in December 2025. Holt publicly reflected on years of work with the couple, including projects focused on military mental health, humanitarian aid, and protecting families from online harm.
Why this moment matters
Taken together, the changes suggest a broader restructuring rather than a single course correction.
Harry and Meghan continue to juggle multiple identities at once: media producers, brand builders, and leaders of a philanthropic organization with global reach. As those roles evolve, so does the need for a communications strategy that can keep pace — and perhaps benefit from trusted partners who already understand the terrain.
Returning to a firm that knows their history may offer a sense of continuity in an otherwise shifting professional landscape.
A quieter kind of reset
For all the public attention the Sussexes attract, this latest move is a reminder that much of their work happens far from cameras and headlines.
Behind the scenes, teams change, strategies adjust, and familiar relationships are sometimes the ones that endure. In a year that already feels full of transition, the decision to return to Sunshine Sachs looks less like a step backward — and more like a steadying pause before whatever comes next.
