(Photo : John Phillips/Getty Images for BFI)
In his appeal of Amber Heard's $2 million verdict in their shocking defamation trial last spring, Johnny Depp has advanced to the next round.
Following their defamation trial, Johnny Depp was found to owe his ex-wife Amber Heard $2 million; he has now appealed that decision.
After the jury in their well reported trial agreed with Heard on one of her three countersuit allegations, Depp was ordered to pay his ex-wife back in June.
Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard
The charge arose from an assertion made by Adam Waldman, one of Depp's attorneys, that Heard and her friends had wrecked their flat and that she had lied about it. According to extracts from the complaint obtained by Law and Crime on Thursday, Depp's attorneys claimed that "the judgment in Heard's favor on that lone remark is incorrect."
Heard had made comments about the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' star, alleging that he had mistreated her during their relationship, and the two were in court over those remarks. Johnny Depp filed the defamation lawsuit, claiming that her comments in an op-ed piece in the Washington Post had negatively harmed his career.
Amber Heard did not specifically mention Depp by name in the article, but given their stature and celebrity, it was clear who she was alluding to when speaking about her history of alleged abuse. The jury in the trial awarded Johnny Deep more than $10 million in damages, which Amber Heard and her estate will be responsible for paying. The brief also claims that Heard's and her defense team's trial arguments were "fatally flawed."
The actor now claims that he shouldn't be required to pay because the jury "overwhelmingly" agreed with him on the other charges made, as per Daily Mail. According to Depp's Thursday submission with the Virginia Court of Appeals, Waldman's remarks did not accurately reflect the actor's own ideas and views, and as a result, he should not be held accountable for them.
According to Johnny Depp's current legal representation, he shouldn't be held responsible for claims he didn't directly make. Depp received $10 to $15 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive penalties at the conclusion of the slander trial.
Later, the judge set a cap on the damages at the $350,000 state maximum, leaving Depp with $8.35 million in total. Out of the $100 million that the actress requested in compensatory damages, $2 million was granted.
After Amber Heard and her attorney filed an appeal in October, Depp's team announced that they will follow suit so that "all information is examined by the court." Additionally, Heard's lawyer requested the judge to declare a mistrial and toss out the verdict last month.
One of the jurors in the case was said to not have been qualified to participate since his summons was meant for his father, who had the same name and residence. The judge denied the motion, stating that the jury's decision should remain because there was no "evidence of fraud or wrongdoing" by the juror.
Heard claims in her appeal that her ex-husband deceived the jury into thinking she was being tried for a comment made before she alleged domestic violence, and that this influenced the outcome.
Did Amber Heard Delete Her Twitter Account?
Meanwhile, it appears that Amber Heard's Twitter account was deleted a few days after her ex-boyfriend Elon Musk took control of the website.
As of Thursday, reports spread the American actor's handle, @realAmberHeard, was no longer an active account on the social media site. However, it was unclear when it had been deleted, and there were no official announcements from the Hollywood star explaining its disappearance.
Per The Independent, Amber Heard's Twitter account was active as of September, based on the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine. Heard had last updated the website and her still operational Instagram account in June to publish a message regarding the verdict of the lengthy defamation case filed by her ex-husband, Johnny Depp, against her.
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