The Johnny Depp-Amber Heard libel trial, which generated intense curiosity for 2 months earlier this 12 months as a livestreamed, no-holds-barred cleaning soap opera that includes one among Hollywood’s greatest stars, is just not fading away quietly.
Earlier this month, Heard’s legal professionals filed a 51-page movement asking Judge Penney Azcarate to put aside the jury’s verdict, which gave $10 million to Depp and $2 million to Heard on competing defamation claims.
The movement cites a number of causes that the decision is untenable, from the shocking choice to declare either side victorious to 1 extent or one other, to a weird case of mistaken id with one of many jurors.
Among the problems raised:
Why $10 million?
Depp sued for $25 million in Fairfax County after Heard wrote a 2018 op-ed piece in The Washington Post about home violence through which she referred to herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.” The article by no means talked about Depp by title, however his legal professionals stated a number of passages within the article defamed him by implication by referring to extremely publicized abuse allegations she made in 2016 as she filed for divorce.
Heard then filed a $50 million counterclaim, additionally for defamation. By the time the case went to trial, her counterclaim had been whittled down to some statements made by one among Depp’s legal professionals, who known as Heard’s abuse allegations a hoax.
The jury awarded $15 million to Depp and $2 million to Heard on her counterclaim. The $15 million judgment was decreased to $10.35 million as a result of Virginia regulation caps punitive damages at $350,000.
Heard’s legal professionals say in court docket papers that the $10 million verdict is unsupported by the details, and appears to show that jurors did not give attention to the fallout from the 2018 op-ed piece — as they have been presupposed to do — and as a substitute simply regarded broadly on the injury Depp’s popularity suffered because of the alleged abuse.
Depp’s legal professionals, although, say the damages are supported by testimony from his agent and others. They say the precedents cited by Heard’s workforce to help her arguments “are decades old, and none involves an international A-list celebrity.”
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard have been married from 2015-2017. (Photo: AP/File)
Steve Cochran, a civil lawyer in Virginia who was appointed by a choose as a impartial conciliator within the case to attempt to decrease pretrial discovery disputes, stated he at all times believed the weakest hyperlink in Depp’s case was the damages, given proof that the actor’s popularity had been ruined in Hollywood nicely earlier than the publication of the op-ed. Still, he stated he’s skeptical that Heard can get the decision put aside.
Scott Surovell, a lawyer and Democratic state senator who practices regulation in Fairfax, additionally stated he sees little motive to put aside the damages.
“What the judge looks for … is that the verdict was adequately supported at trial and wasn’t based on speculation or conjecture. (Depp) makes a lot of money from movies. That doesn’t sound to me like the damages were based on speculation or conjecture, but on evidence,” he stated.
“Inconsistent and irreconcilable”
Heard’s legal professionals argue that the verdicts for Depp on one hand and Heard on the opposite are essentially nonsensical.
“The jury’s dueling verdicts are inconsistent and irreconcilable,” her legal professionals wrote.
Depp’s legal professionals, although, say the decision kind utilized by jurors allowed them to precise with specificity precisely which statements they discovered defamatory. When you take a look at the person statements, they are saying, the dueling verdicts make sense.
Jeremiah Denton III, a Virginia Beach lawyer with expertise in defamation instances, stated he doesn’t view the verdicts as irreconcilable. If something, he stated, the award most in jeopardy is the $2 million given to Heard, as a result of he stated it’s legally doubtful that Depp might be held answerable for statements made by his lawyer.
“I don’t understand why the judge even allowed that issue to go to the jury,” he stated.
Camille Vasquez represented Johnny Depp within the case. (Photo: AP/File)
Juror #15
One of the extra uncommon objects within the dialogue is a case of obvious mistaken id with one of many jurors. According to court docket papers, a 77-year-old county resident acquired a summons for the trial. But the person’s son, who has the identical title and lives on the identical handle, responded to the summons and served in his stead.
Heard’s legal professionals say Virginia regulation is strict about juror identities, and the case of mistaken id is grounds for a mistrial. They have offered no proof that the 52-year-old son, recognized in court docket papers solely as Juror #15, purposefully or insidiously sought to interchange his father, however they argue that risk shouldn’t be discounted.
“The Court cannot assume, as Mr. Depp asks it to, that Juror 15’s apparently improper service was an innocent mistake. It could have been an intentional attempt to serve on the jury of a high-profile case,” Heard’s legal professionals wrote.
Paul Bekman, a Baltimore lawyer who has additionally tried instances in Virginia, stated Heard’s workforce wanted to lift any points in regards to the juror forward of time.
“Anybody looking at a 52-year-old and a 77-year-old would be able to tell — hopefully — that there’s a difference of 25 years, and they would have the right to inquire about that,” he stated. “I believe it is too late to complain about the juror.”
Cochran additionally stated he was skeptical that the confusion might end in a mistrial or the choose setting apart the decision, however he cautioned that it’s troublesome to foretell as a result of the difficulty is so uncommon.
“I’ve been practicing for 50 years and never seen that issue come up,” he stated.
