Amber Just Settled Her Defamation Case With Johnny—She Can’t Afford ‘An Impossible Bill’
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Her attorneys have just filed to appeal the “chilling” verdict in favor of Johnny Depp during their defamation trial, so you might be wondering where Amber Heard is now and what result she’s hoping for in a new round of legal proceedings.
Heard, who claimed she was a victim of domestic abuse in a personal essay published by the Washington Post in 2016, was found to have defamed her ex-husband in June 2022. He was awarded $15 million in compensation and punitive damages, while she won counterclaims against the Pirates of the Caribbean star and was awarded $2 million in damages. Her legal team now argues that the trial was held in “a wholly inconvenient” location and they objected to the judge’s decision to exclude certain pieces of evidence, including notes from therapists that documented years of the alleged abuse. So where is Amber Heard now and what are the details of her appeal? Read on.
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Where is Amber Heard now?
Where is Amber Heard now? She’s reportedly living in Spain, under a pseudonym, with her daughter Oonagh since her defamation trial against Johnny Depp was finalized in June 2022. “The trial was exhausting for her,” a source told People. “She missed her little girl” and “has spent the last few months in Europe,” which she “loves,” and that the actress “is able to just be a mom there.” The insider continued: “She is focused on raising her daughter,” the source adds. “She spends every day with her girl. They stroll around, visit parks and enjoy family time. Amber is a great mom.”
Why did Amber Heard appeal Johnny Depp’s verdict?
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On December 5, 2022, Heard’s legal team announced she had filed to appeal the court’s decision to (mostly) side with Depp in her US-based libel case. Her legal team is seeking either a retrial or reversal of the jury’s decision, stating that it could have a disastrous impact on victims of domestic abuse coming forward. In a lengthy written document, her lawyers argued: “That holding, if allowed to stand, undoubtedly will have a chilling effect on other women who wish to speak about abuse involving powerful men.” The Aquaman star’s team went on to explain that another libel case, against a 2018 article in The Sun which referred to Depp as a “wife-beater”, was unsuccessful because the UK High Court of Justice ruled “that Heard’s abuse allegations were true”.
The extensive 68-page document also said that the trial, which took place in Virginia, was “a wholly inconvenient forum with no connection to Depp or any meaningful connection to his claims.” Rather, they contended, the trial should have taken place in California where both parties reside. “The trial court erroneously refused to dismiss this action on the ground of ‘forum non conveniens’, based on its mistaken conclusion that Depp’s claims arose in Virginia because the Washington Post’s servers are located here.” The document continued: “None of the conduct relevant to Depp’s defamation claims occurred in Virginia,” the document reads. “Depp is a resident of California. The incidents that led to Heard obtaining the restraining order took place in California, not Virginia.”
Previously, Heard asked for a mistrial after an alleged juror mix-up. In documents obtained by People, the wrong juror supposedly showed up to court. Heard’s lawyers claim she was entitled to a mistrial “based on newly discovered facts and information that Juror No. 15 was not the individual summoned for jury duty on April 11, 2022.” The documents claimed the person who was selected for the jury was 77 years old at the time and shares the same last name and address as someone who was 52. “It is deeply troubling for an individual not summoned for jury duty nonetheless to appear for jury duty and serve on a jury, especially in a such as this,” the filing said. noting the “high-profile” status of the trial.
In Heard’s first post-trial interview with Today’s Savannah Guthrie released on June 18, 2022 on Dateline, she talked about how she felt during the trial and its overall fairness. “I don’t care what one thinks about me, or what judgment you want to make about what happened in the privacy of my own home in my marriage, behind closed doors,” Heard said. “I don’t presume the average person should know these things, so I don’t take it personally.” Heard continued, “Even somebody who is sure I’m deserving of all this hate and vitriol, even if you think that I’m lying, you still couldn’t tell me—look me in the eye and tell me—that you think on social media there’s been a fair representation. You cannot tell me that you think that this has been fair.”
When Guthrie said that the jury believed that she lied in her testimonies, Heard responded by saying: “They had sat in those seats and heard over three weeks of nonstop relentless testimony from paid employees and, towards the end of the trial, randos—as I say,” When asked if she blamed the jury for the verdict, she responded, “I don’t blame them, I actually understand. [Johnny]’s a beloved character and people feel they know him. He’s a fantastic actor.”
After six weeks of testimony in court, a jury ruled in favor of Depp on June 1, 2022. He was awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages for a total of $15 million. Depp also was ordered to pay Heard $2 million in compensatory damages. Due to the cap on punitive damages under Virginia state law, Judge Penney Azcarate reduced Heard’s punitive damages from $5 million to $350,000. Her lawyers’ motion stated that “the evidence overwhelmingly supported Ms. Heard believed she was the victim of abuse at the hands of Mr. Depp.” The motion continued, “Because actual malice is a subjective standard, whether Ms. Heard believes she was abused must be judged by her definition of abuse. Ms. Heard testified unequivocally that Mr. Depp abused her physically, emotionally, and psychologically. Mr. Depp presented no evidence that Ms. Heard does not believe abuse can be physical, emotional or psychological.”
Depp was not in attendance at the long-awaited verdict “due to previously scheduled work commitments made before the trial,” and was not “physically present.” He watched the verdict be read out virtually from the United Kingdom, a source told People at the time. Heard’s spokesperson told People that his “presence shows where your priorities are. Johnny Depp plays guitar in the U.K. while Amber Heard waits for a verdict in Virginia. Depp is taking his snickering and lack of seriousness on tour.”
Why did Amber Heard settle Johnny Depp’s defamation case?
In an Instagram post posted on December 19, 2022, Amber Heard made a statement in regard to settling the defamation case. “It’s important for me to say that I never chose this,” she wrote. “I defended my truth in doing so my life as I knew it was destroyed. The vilification I have faced on social media is an amplified version of the ways women are re-victimised when they come forward.”
She continued, “Now I finally have an opportunity to emancipate myself from something I attempted to leave over six years ago and on terms I can agree to,” she continued. “I have made no admission. This is not an act of concession. There are no restrictions or gags with respect to my voice moving forward.”
In another slide, she talked about the differences of the justice systems of the US and the UK in regards to the defamation cases. “When I stood before a judge in the UK, I was vindicated by a robust, impartial and fair system, where I was protected from having to give the worst moments of my testimony in front of the world’s media, and where the court found that I was subjected to domestic and sexual violence,” Heard wrote on Instagram Monday. “In the US, however, I exhausted almost all my resources in advance of and during a trial in which I was subjected to a courtroom in which abundant, direct evidence that corroborated my testimony was excluded and in which popularity and power mattered more than reason and due process. In the interim I was exposed to a type of humiliation that I simply cannot re-live. “I simply cannot go through that for a third time,” Heard wrote, saying that legal process “has shown itself unable to protect me and my right to free speech.”
“I cannot afford to risk an impossible bill – one that is not just financial, but also psychological, physical and emotional,” the Aquaman actress added. “Women shouldn’t have to face abuse or bankruptcy for speaking her truth, but unfortunately it is not uncommon.
She continued, “Time is precious, and I want to spend my time productively and purposefully. For too many years I have been caged in an arduous and expensive legal process, which has shown itself unable to protect me and my right to free speech. I cannot afford to risk an impossible bill – one that is not just financial but also psychological, physical and emotional. Women shouldn’t have to face abuse or bankruptcy for speaking her truth, but unfortunately it is not uncommon.”
I”n settling this case I’m also choosing the freedom to dedicate my time to the work that helped me heal after my divorce; work that exists in realms in which I feel seen, heard and believed and in which I know I can effect change.I will not be threatened, disheartened, or dissuaded by what happened from speaking the truth. No one can and no one will take that from me. My voice forever remains the most valuable asset I have.”
She ended the statement with thanks to her team and the public, “I’d like to thank my outstanding appellate and original trial teams for their relentless hard work. I want to thank everyone who has supported me and I turn my attention to the growing support that I felt and seen publicly in the months since trial, and the efforts have been made to show solidarity with my story. Any survivor knows that the ability to tell their story often feels like the only relief. I cannot find enough words to tell you the hope your belief in me inspires. Not just for me, but for all of you. Thank you. See you soon.”
A source close to Depp told People that the settlement was at a hefty price. “It’s a seven-figure settlement. The judgment is in place. But part of the point of appealing it for her was both the financial reasons but also to ensure there wasn’t a judgment in place against her — that has significant ramifications. This judgment is never going away. Depp has said it wasn’t about money. He just wanted the truth.”
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-SAFE (7233) for confidential support.
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