The Johnny Depp-Amber Heard libel trial ended about six weeks ago. But the Heard legal team is trying to get the jury’s verdict in the case tossed.
After two months of live streamed, salacious, soap-opera-style testimony, the jury awarded Depp $15 million and Heard $2 million. Depp’s $15 million included $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. However, the case was tried in Virginia, where punitive damages are capped at $350,000 so the final amount awarded to Depp was $10,350,000.
The decision declaring both sides victorious was surprising, according to Heard’s lawyers. In the 51-page motion filed with Judge Penney Azcarate, the Heard legal team asked the judge to set aside the jury’s verdict(s).
Depp’s defamation suit said the actor’s reputation was damaged because of an op-ed Heard wrote for the Washington Post. Heard’s lawyers say Depp’s reputation was damaged long before the op-ed came out and that the dueling verdicts of awarding money to both Depp and Heard are inconsistent and irreconcilable.
Heard’s lawyers argued the $10 million verdict is unsupported by facts and seems to demonstrate jurors didn’t focus on just the fallout from the 2018 op-ed piece, like they were supposed to do, and instead just looked broadly at the damage Depp’s reputation suffered as a result of the alleged abuse.
Depp’s lawyers countered the damages are supported by testimony from his agent and others.
Also, Heard’s lawyers said in the filing there should have been a mistrial, because one of the jury members wasn’t the right person. According to court documents, a 77-year-old man was initially summoned for jury duty. But the man’s 52-year-old son, who has the same name and lives at the same address, responded to the summons and was sat as juror #15.
Heard’s lawyers said since Virginia’s law on juror identities is so strict that the case of mistaken identity is grounds to declare a mistrial.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
