The judgement in Johnny Depp’s defamation case against Amber Heard is in Johnny Depp’s favour in the most part. Nevertheless, a month after the trial’s conclusion, both celebrities are still experiencing its impacts, whether they be psychologically or monetarily. Regarding the latter, it seems that Depp will now be required to pay some legal bills as a result of a recent court decision. And said costs are connected to the supporting materials his legal team and he used to support his former spouse in court.
The American Civil Liberties Union got involved in the lawsuit and demanded payment from Johnny Depp before a decision was made.
The nonprofit organisation claimed in legal documents that it was requesting payment for “considerable expense spent responding to onerous subpoenas served by Mr. Depp from an underlying action in which neither the ACLU nor any of its employees are parties.”
The star requested hundreds of papers over the course of six years, according to the organization’s attorney (via Newsweek), who also claimed that these requests will be used as evidence in the trial. This led the organization to conclude that $86,000 would be enough to pay for its services.
A Manhattan Supreme Court court decided last week that the actor must donate $38,000 to the ACLU. The organisation appears satisfied, even if the total amount is less than half of what the group was asking for in terms of reimbursement.
In a statement shared with Newsweek, a spokesperson expressed satisfaction with the matter being addressed:
“We are pleased that the Court recognized that the ACLU complied with Mr. Depp’s requests and did so at great expense.”
The initial amount asked for was rejected by Jessica Meyers, Johnny Depp’s attorney, who called it “exorbitant and unreasonable.” Furthermore, she emphasized that the organization “were responsible for drafting and placing the op-ed that the Virginia jury just found to be defamatory to Mr. Depp.” The defamation trial noted that assistance with the Aquaman star’s 2018 op-ed in The Washington Post.
According to the jury’s decision, the Oscar nominee was to be awarded $15 million, with $10 million being compensatory and the other $5 million being for punitive damages. As part of her $100 million countersuit, Amber Heard received a $2 million settlement as well. The sum for the punitive damages was eventually lowered to $350,000 and, as a result, Heard now owes her ex-husband $8.35 million.
As per Cinemablend, although some may have noticed when the actress took a private plane after that statement was made, the actress’ lawyers have subsequently claimed that she is unable to pay the amount. Heard may have to pay even more money if she decides to appeal as advised by her attorneys, in addition to the money she already owes in the case.
Both Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are currently involved in other legal matters. Depp is about to return to court in connection with an assault case involving his 2018 film City of Lies. (The lawyer of the plaintiff in that case has spoken out and doesn’t seem fazed by Depp’s victory in the defamation trial.)
Heard is still under investigation in Australia for lying to authorities. Authorities are specifically investigating if she lied about how she got Pistol and Boo, the Yorkshire terriers she had with Depp, into the nation in 2015.
A large portion of the public will undoubtedly be monitoring both of those ongoing legal matters. The same is presumably true of how the two parties intend to attempt to recoup the money they owe as a result of their legal dispute.