ACLU demands Johnny Depp pay legal expenses after Heard verdict

Johnny Depp may have won his defamation lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, but the American Civil Liberties Union has gone to court to ask the actor to pay its legal fees. The organization is asking for $86,253.26 for expenses related to the trial which ended this week.

The ACLU helped Heard write the op-ed that appeared in the Washington Post which was at the center of the defamation case.

The organization claims it had to review thousands of documents in response to a number of subpoena requests from Depp’s legal team. The ACLU also says it produced witnesses in the trial, including its Executive Director, which accounted for more than sixteen hours of depositions. The request also claims Depp refused concessions which would have limited the expense to the ACLU.

The documents in question were in regards to donations from Heard to the ACLU. The actress promised to donate $3.5 million of the $7 million settlement reached when the couple divorced. During the trial, a representative from the organization said it had only received $1.3 million from Heard.

For her part, Heard testified that she still plans to donate the full amount, but claimed she was delayed due to mounting legal bills as she was in and out of court with Depp.

At the conclusion of the trial on Wednesday, the jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, which are limited to $350,000 in Virginia, where the trial took place. Heard was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages, with no punitive damages as part of her countersuit.

Heard plans to appeal the verdict.