In this post, we are going to break down the factual matrix, court room testimonies and unpack the legal bases that formed the monumental ruling in Depp v Heard (John C Depp II v Amber Laura Heard Civil action No. CL 2019-0002911).
Background to the case
Depp initiated defamation proceedings against Amber in a $50 million lawsuit in Virginia over three statements which appeared in an online op-ed written by Amber in Washington Post in 2018, alleging Depp of domestic and sexual abuse, making him the scourge of press, causing him to lose lucrative film deals. Amber also countersued Depp alleging him of defaming her in three statements published in Daily Mail. In 2020, Johnny lost a UK libel case against tabloid Sun for calling him a wife beator. The libel suit against Sun was a bench ruling while this time it was a civil jury.
Now let’s recap the jury’s verdict in Depp v Heard
Amber found liable on all three counts
To start off, we will first go through the questions that were before the jury with regard to Depp’s claims against Amber in Washington Post op-ed titled "Amber Heard: I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change".
The first statement is the headline of the op-ed itself.
“Amber Heard: I spoke up against sexual violence — and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change"
- Did Johnny prove all the elements of defamation? Yes
- Did he prove by a greater weight of evidence that the statement was made or published by Amber? Yes
- Was the statement about Johnny Depp? Yes
- Was the statement false? Yes
- Whether the statement has a defamatory implication about Johnny Depp? Yes
- Whether the defamatory implication was designed and intended by Amber? Yes
- Due to circumstances surrounding the publication of the statement it conveyed a defamatory implication to someone who saw it other than Johnny Depp? Yes
- Did Depp prove by clear and convincing evidence Amber acted with actual malice? Yes
Next comes the second statement in the same op-ed.
“Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out".
- Did Johnny prove all the elements of defamation? Yes
- Did he prove by a greater weight of evidence that the statement was made or published by Amber? Yes
- Was the statement about Johnny Depp? Yes
- Was the statement false? Yes
- Whether the statement has a defamatory implication about Johnny Depp? Yes
- Whether the defamatory implication was designed and intended by Amber? Yes
- Due to circumstances surrounding the publication of the statement it conveyed a defamatory implication to someone who saw it other than Johnny Depp? Yes
- Did Depp prove by clear and convincing evidence Amber acted with actual malice? Yes
The third statement is as follows.
“I had the rare vantage point of seeing, in real time, how institutions protect men accused of abuse.” The jury separately found that Depp, through his lawyer Adam Waldman, defamed Heard in one of three counts in her countersuit".
- Did Johnny prove all the elements of defamation? Yes
- Did he prove by a greater weight of evidence that the statement was made or published by Amber? Yes
- Was the statement about Johnny Depp? Yes
- Was the statement false? Yes
- Whether the statement has a defamatory implication about Johnny Depp? Yes
- Whether the defamatory implication was designed and intended by Amber? Yes
- Due to circumstances surrounding the publication of the statement it conveyed a defamatory implication to someone who saw it other than Johnny Depp? Yes
- Did Depp prove by clear and convincing evidence Amber acted with actual malice? Yes
The jury unanimously found Amber liable for defamation on all three counts. It’s abundantly clear the jury did not find Amber of just defaming Depp, but found her doing so maliciously, knowing very well that she’s lying.
Amber counter-sued Depp
Now let’s look at jury’s verdict on Amber’s counter claims on Waldman statements.
As to the statement appearing on April 8th 2020 online edition of Daily Mail. These statements were never made by Depp, but his attorney Adam Waldman.
"Amber Heard and her friends in the media used fake sexual violence allegations as both sword and shield, depending on their needs. They have selected some of her sexual violence hoax 'facts' as the sword, inflicting them on the public and Mr. Depp".
Did Amber prove all the elements of defamation? No
The second statement which appeared on 27th April 2020 in Daily Mail online edition is read as follows.
"Quite simply this was an ambush, a hoax. They set Mr. Depp up by calling the cops but the first attempt didn't do the trick," Waldman told The Daily Mail, as quoted in the jury form. "The officers came to the penthouses, thoroughly searched and interviewed, and left after seeing no damage to face or property. So Amber and her friends spilled a little wine and roughed the place up, got their stories straight under the direction of a lawyer and publicist, and then placed a second call to 911."
- Did Amber prove all the elements of defamation? Yes
- Did she prove by a greater weight of evidence that Mr. Waldman acted as agent of Depp made or published the statement? Yes
- Was the statement about Amber? Yes
- Due to circumstances surrounding the publication of the statement it conveyed a defamatory implication to someone who saw it other than Amber? Yes
- Was the statement false? Yes
- Did Amber prove by clear and convincing evidence Depp acted with actual malice? Yes
On this second claim, Depp was found defaming Amber through his attorney Waldman and was ordered to pay $2 million as damages.
The third statement appeared on 27thApril online edition of Daily Mail.
"We have reached the beginning of the end of Ms. Heard's abuse hoax against Johnny Depp."
Did Amber prove all the elements of defamation? No
Amber is paying Depp $10 million
Sounds like big money. The jury verdict resulted in two monetary judgements. One against Amber, and one against Depp. So Amber got some money too.
As against Amber the jury granted Depp compensatory damages in the amount of $10 million. $5 million was awarded as punitive damages. This was actually reduced to $350 000 in view of Depp’s substance abuse which contributed to a dent in his own reputation. This gives an allusion to jury’s thinking. In jury’s mind Depp was no Saint too. His victory against Amber did not completely rule out the abuse that has been going on.
Now that Amber is faced up with another battle, this time a financial one as she must find funds necessary to pay Depp, that is a staggering $10.35 million. Depp has a time period up to 30 years to collect the sum. Therefore declaring bankruptcy will not be an option to Amber.
How much Johnny is paying Amber?
Depp is also ordered to pay compensatory damages amounting to $2 million on the second counter claim relating to Adam Waldman statement. No punitive damages were awarded to Amber.
Falsus in uno, falsus omnibus
The Latin maxim perfectly describes why Amber’s case collapsed and crashed at her feet. False in one thing, false in everything. For years Amber used all means to ruin Depp’s life and career. But in court house, with the high bar defence is faced in defamation cases the truth had to come out. There wasn't convincing evidence to prove truthfulness of Amber's allegations against Depp. Apart from proving the defence of truth or public interest, the real defence to defamation case is all about being truthful on the stand. This is where Amber failed. She lied on oath, risking prosecution for purjury. In defamation trials it all boils down to credibility of defence or of witnesses.
It was a battle of experts
Other than the credibility issue, the trial rested significantly on the expert evidence of two forensic physiologists. Dr. Shannon Curry testified for Depp while Dr. Dawn Hughes took the witness stand from Amber’s side. Dr. Curry opinionated that Amber is suffering from borderline personality disorder and showing symptoms of PTSD. Borderline personality disorder is characterized by constant fluctuations and instability in emotions, hyper sensitivity to feeling offended, tendency to react aggressively and commit physical violence on intimate partners. Curry said that this is a predictive factor for women who are abusive towards their partners. Curry’s testimony had an immense impact on the outcome of the trial.
Dr. Dawn in her testimony also admitted to Amber having PTSD and showing signs of intimate partner violence due to physical, psychological, sexual violence, coercive control and surveillance behaviour by Depp. In her report she revealed Amber experiences psychological and emotional trauma from the statements alleged in her counter claims.
Thus, Dr. Dawn’s testimony though it was meant to be a conflicting one , rather ended up supplementing Depp’s assertions that Amber’s PTSD was the contributing factor to the entire abuse saga which Depp contended as a self-inflicted one.
How did Depp and Amber react to the verdict?
“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” Amber commented on the jury verdict.
— Amber Heard (@realamberheard) June 1, 2022
“The Jury gave me my life back. The truth never perishes”. Depp issued a statement minutes after the verdict was announced.— Johnny Depp (@Johnnydepp__ll) June 1, 2022
Remember the name, it's Camille Vasquez.
She's the lawyer who represented Depp in his high profile case against Amber. She became an internet sensation overnight that Depp's fans wants her to replace Amber as Mera in Aquaman 2. Now Johnny and Camille are called the 'New Avengers'.
This lady is real Queen CAST her for #Aquaman 2 instead of Amber....#CamilleVazquez #Camille pic.twitter.com/Bxuv9VyV6o
— Daffar 🏴☠️🍥 (@daffar89) May 26, 2022
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| Attorney Camille Vasquez |
Will Amber appeal?
It’s highly unlikely an appeal will pull through. Given the high bar of appeal under Virginia law, post-judgement interest requirements and Amber’s current financial standing(Amber has a net worth of only $6 million), it would be hard for Amber to find the necessary funds to file an appeal successfully.
Nevertheless Brend Hughes Amber’s Attorney during an interview with CBS revealed their wish to appeal the verdict. Under Virginia law Amber needs to show a valid ground in order to appeal the jury’s verdict such as misdirection of instructions to jury, procedural unfairness or evidentiary irregularities.
You can watch Attorney Brend Hughes's interview with CBS morning here.
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