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Johnny Depp defamation trial: Both Sides head back to court Friday morning

johnny depp and amber heard
Credit: The Hollywood Reporter/Canva Creation

Attorneys for Johnny Depp and attorneys for Amber Heard are scheduled to appear in court one last time Friday morning in the Johnny Depp defamation case which originally began in mid-April.

Johnny Depp Responds to Amber Heard NBC Interview – The Hollywood Reporter

Credit: The Hollywood Reporter

In what many called “the trial of the century,” Johnny Depp sued actress and ex-wife Amber Heard for $50 million, alleging she defamed him and cost him his career with a seething opEd she penned and published in The Washington Post. After Heard’s attempts to have the case thrown out of court were unsuccessful, she countersued Depp for $100 million.

On June 1, a jury of seven delivered its verdict: Johnny Depp was indeed defamed by his ex-wife, and Depp’s legal team had proven its case on all three of his claims. The jury, therefore, awarded him compensatory damages of $10 million and punitive damages of $5 million. The jury found that Heard’s legal team had proven its case on only one of its claims, therefore awarding the actress $2 million in compensatory damages, but zero in punitive damages.

Johnny Depp vs. Amber Heard: Who is winning the trial? A coffee shop tip  jar could give us the answer | Marca

Credit: Marca

But on June 1, rather than entering the jury’s verdict as an order on the docket, Judge Penney Azcarate said both sides would have until June 24 to come to a settlement agreement between the two. If no settlement agreement is reached, the judge will enter the order on the docket as it stands per the jury’s verdict. If both sides can agree on a settlement, that settlement will then become the order.

The trial that played out for all the world to see and hear saw allegations of domestic abuse, domestic violence, and sexual abuse. Actor Johnny Depp and ex-wife Amber Heard originally met on the set of Rum Diary a decade ago, and according to court documents, the alleged abuse began shortly after the couple’s relationship began.

Daily inside the court during the defamation case, many witnesses were called to testify in defense of actor Johnny Depp, while a smaller number of witnesses were called to testify in defense of Depp’s ex-wife.

Outside the court, Johnny Depp fans lined the roadway used by Depp’s driver each day to deliver Depp to the courthouse in the morning and take him back to his hotel in the evening.

Why the World Became Obsessed With the Depp V. Heard Trial

Credit: Insider

The televised legal battle played out for six weeks and hit the airwaves with warnings about content.

Since the defamation case wrapped up on June 1, news about the ex-couple, as well as members of each actor’s respective legal team, has been copious. Immediately following the verdict, Amber Heard‘s attorney Elaine Bederhoft gave an interview on Good Morning America and the Today show. Johnny Depp has been on tour in the United Kingdom where he has taken to the stage and showed off his musical prowess, and just last week, the full interview between Amber Heard and the Today show’s Savannah Guthrie played in its entirety on Dateline NBC (and was met with criticism as Guthrie’s husband served as part of Depp’s legal team during the court trial).

Amber Heard Today Show Clip

Credit: NBC News

There has been talk that despite the jury’s verdict, Amber Heard may not end up paying her ex-husband Johnny Depp a single penny, but not because of the jury. Rather, rumors have swirled that Depp might dismiss the judgment against Heard–or decrease the amount she has to pay him–especially after reports about Heard’s inability to pay the hefty judgment against her.

All along, Depp and his legal team stated that the case was not about money, but about setting the record straight and clearing Johnny Depp‘s name for the sake of his children and his career.

johnny depp cadillac

Credit: Insider

“We obviously can’t disclose any attorney-client communications, but as Mr. Depp testified, and as we both made clear in our respective closings, this was never about money for Mr. Depp,” said Depp attorney Benjamin Chew during an interview with Good Morning America. “This was about restoring his reputation, and he’s done that.”

The hearing is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. in the Fairfax County Virginia courtroom Friday morning with Judge Penney Azcarate presiding.

About Becky Burkett

Becky's from the Lone Star State and has been writing since she was 10 and encountered her first Disney Park when she was 11. It was love at first Main Street Electrical Parade. Joy is blank lined journals, 0.7 mm pens, and all things Walt, Woody and Buzz, PIXAR, Imagineering, Sleeping Beauty (make it blue!), Disney Parks history and EPCOT. At Disney World, you'll find her croonin' with the birdies at the Enchanted Tiki Room or hangin' with Woody and the gang at Toy Story Land. If you can dream, you really can do it!