According to her spokesman, Amber Heard, 36, plans to appeal today’s verdict in her defamation case against Johnny Depp, 58, which left her owing her ex-husband $10.35 million.
The jury found in favor of all three of Depp’s defamation charges against Heard after less than three days of deliberation, ruling that she had falsely accused him of domestic abuse.
The actor received a total of $15 million in damages, including $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. The damages were later restricted at the Virginia maximum of $350,000, leaving Depp with a total of $8.35 million in damages.
In contrast, Heard won just one of her three countersuit claims, which related to statements made by Depp’s lawyer suggesting she and friends had trashed their apartment before calling the police out. She was awarded just $2million in compensatory damages out of the $100million she was seeking, and zero dollars in punitive damages.
Heard’s spokesperson Alafair Hall told The New York Times she now plans to appeal.
It is not clear on what grounds she plans to appeal. To be granted an appeal, Heard would likely need to demonstrate that there were errors in the trial, or in the presiding judge’s reading of the law.
Heard would also need to post bond of the full $10,350,000, plus interest charges over the course of an appeal trial.
Videos Below
Amber Heard awaiting the verdict in her defamation trial against her ex-husband Johnny Depp on June 1. She is planning to appeal the verdict which left her owing $10.35million
Johnny Depp pumping a defiant fist toward spectators in the courtroom after closing statements in the defamation trial on May 27
In a statement after the verdict, Heard said, ‘The disappointment I feel today is beyond words. I’m heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence, and sway of my ex-husband.’
‘I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously.’
As she left court, Heard looked downcast while climbing into a truck with blacked out windows with her sister Whitney. A member of her legal team could be seen putting her hand on her back as she got in.
Depp, on the other hand, spent the day celebrating at a pub in the UK with rock stars Jeff Beck and Sam Fender, while his legal team were all smiles and joined each other in a group hug in Virginia.
In a statement Depp said, ‘Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed.’
‘And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled.’
The lightning-fast verdict came as the culmination of the six-week trial that was the OJ Simpson case for Generation Z: a spectacle that was chopped up and replayed on TikTok in clips that were viewed tens of millions of times.
It was the second time the former husband and wife squared off in court: Depp lost a libel case against a British newspaper at the High Court in London in 2020 where a judge ruled it was ‘substantially true’ he was a wife beater.