Amber Heard Appeals For New Trial In Defamation Case against Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp has also filed his own appeal against Amber Heard appeal for new trial. Amber Heard’s lawyers have said the verdict will have a “chilling effect” as the actress filed for a new defamation trial against Johnny Depp.

Amber Heard appeals for new trial in defamation against her ex-husband Johnny Depp, claiming that the Virginia court battle she lost was held in the wrong state. 

In June 2022, the defamation case trial came to an end. As a result, the jury awarded Depp USD 10 million in compensatory damages and USD 5 million in punitive damages from Heard. On the other hand, Amber was rewarded USD 2 million in compensatory damages and zero in punitive damages from Depp

However now, nearly five months after the verdict was announced, Ms Heard’s team filed for a new appeal against Mr Depp in a Virginia appeals court, the New York times reported. As per the outlet, Ms Heard’s lawyers submitted multiple claims arguing that the trial was held in the wrong state. They also objected to the judge’s decision to exclude certain pieces of evidence, including therapy notes in which she reported being abused.

Amber Heard appeals for new trial.

According to Deadline, the fresh appeal submitted by Amber Heard’s lawyers Jay Ward Brown and David L. Axelrod at the court reads, “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 trial court also erred in overruling Heard’s demurrer, in which she argued that the challenged statements are non-actionable expressions of opinion and are not reasonably capable of conveying the alleged defamatory implication.”

In the document, Ms Heard’s team asked for the jury’s verdict to be reversed, either with a dismissal of Mr Depp’s claims or a new trial entirely. They even stated that the case should never have gone to trial because another court had already concluded that Mr Depp abused Ms Heard on multiple occasions – a reference to the 2020 UK ruling in favour of Britain’s The Sun, which Mr Depp had sued for calling him a wife-beater. 

The 68-page record added, “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 appeal by Amber’s lawyers revealed several claims mentioning that the trial has taken place in the wrong format.