Johnny Depp Needs To Win Defamation Lawsuit Against Amber Heard, Lawyer Explains
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are currently squaring off in a courtroom in Virginia, and the issue is libel and defamation.
In response to her writing an op-ed piece for The Washington Post in favor of the Violence Against Women Act, the former "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor is seeking $50 million in damages from his ex-wife.
Amber relied on her own alleged personal experiences as a victim of sexual assault and domestic violence to write the piece.
Her article, which did not identify any individual culprits, echoed allegations against Johnny that she had brought up throughout their 2016 divorce proceedings.
However, the 58-year-old veteran actor is now alleging that his ex-wife, who is 35 years old, defamed him in her article.
They will now go to trial with seven jurors and four alternates to see who will win.
However, it seems that in order to win, Johnny Depp will have to pull "a rabbit out of a hat," per media lawyer Alex Wade who spoke to The Sun.
It is possible that the actor's career will be over if he suffers a second court setback.
As stated by Wade, a lawyer with the law firm of Wiggin LLP, the actor's current trial is the last chance for him to save his career, and if he loses again, it would be hard for him to return to the spotlight.
"There's nothing wrong with being a bad boy in Hollywood, but in the aftermath of the hashtag MeToo, the manner in which we see these things in today's environment is that you can't just be a little bit of a bad boy anymore."
Johnny Depp Suffers His First Legal Setback
Johnny Depp's libel action against The Sun tabloid in the United Kingdom was first dismissed following the publication of an article in which he was referred to as a "wife-beater."
In 2020, Judge Justice Nicol said that the newspaper had shown that the information included in the article was "basically true," per the BBC.
He came to the conclusion that 12 of the 14 claimed domestic violence episodes had indeed occurred.
Johnny's attorney referred to the decision as "perverse" and said that they intended to file an appeal at the moment.
Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for The Sun said that the newspaper has advocated for domestic abuse victims for many decades and even complimented Amber Heard for her "courage in providing testimony in court."
Allegations of Abuse Against Johnny Depp
The claims of outbreaks of violence occurred between 2013 and 2016, which coincided with the breakup of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard.
The court cited three instances in which he said that the "Alice In Wonderland" actor had caused Amber to be "fearful for her life," including one that occurred in Australia in 2015, and added that the actor had placed Amber in "fear for her life."
