Jurors have reached a verdict in Johnny Depp's multi-million dollar US lawsuit against former wife Amber Heard.
Mr Depp sued the Aquaman star for 50 million US dollars over the piece, titled: "I spoke up against sexual violence - and faced our culture's wrath. That has to change." The article does not mention Mr Depp by name, yet his lawyers said it falsely implies he physically and sexually abused Ms Heard while they were together.
In August 2020, Heard filed a counterclaim against Depp in response to his libel lawsuit, accusing him of allegedly orchestrating a “smear campaign” against her and describing his own lawsuit as a continuation of “abuse and harassment.”
The actor has consistently denied the "outrageous, outlandish" claims of abuse and said he had "spoken up for what I have been carrying on my back reluctantly for six years" during his own evidence during the trial.
During closing remarks, both sides urged jurors to think about other victims of domestic abuse. Ms Heard's legal team highlighted the message that a verdict in Mr Depp's favour would send to others, while the actor's representatives said her claims were "an act of profound cruelty to true survivors".
Following six weeks of evidence and roughly 13 hours of deliberation, jurors have reached a decision. The jury announced it found Amber Heard guilty of defamation.
This means Johnny Depp won his multimillion-dollar US lawsuit against former wife Amber Heard after a jury ruled her 2018 article in the Washington Post was defamatory.
But Ms Heard was awarded 2 million dollars (£1.6 million) in damages after her counterclaim against Mr Depp over comments made by his lawyer Adam Waldman, who allegedly referred to her abuse claims as a "hoax," was also found to be defamatory.
In the past few days, Mr Depp has made appearances on stage alongside musician Jeff Beck in the UK, and he was not present for the verdict.
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