Aquaman actress Amber Heard is officially appealing the Johnny Depp defamation trial verdict, after previously failing to get a Virginia judge to set aside the $10 million judgment awarded against her in favor of Depp.
“We believe the court made errors that prevented a just and fair verdict consistent with the First Amendment. We are therefore appealing the verdict,” a spokesperson for Heard told TMZ. “While we realize today’s filing will ignite the Twitter bonfires, there are steps we need to take to ensure both fairness and justice.”
On Thursday, Heard’s attorneys filed the documents to appeal the $10.3 million judgment a jury ordered her to pay the Pirates of the Caribbean star.
Earlier this month, Heard had also filed a motion requesting a new trial, claiming that one of the jurors had come to court when it was actually his father who received the jury summons. The judge, however, rejected the motion.
“The jury listened to the extensive evidence presented during the six-week trial and came to a clear and unanimous verdict that the defendant herself defamed Mr. Depp in multiple instances. We remain confident in our case and that this verdict will stand,” a spokesperson for Depp told TMZ.
Depp sued Heard for $50 million, claiming that a 2018 Washington Post op-ed — in which she described as a victim of domestic abuse — has harmed his movie career.
The trial ended with a jury finding for Depp on all three of his defamation claims, awarding him $10 million in compensatory damages after deciding that Heard had defamed him, and “acted with actual malice.”
The jury also found for Heard on one of her two claims, awarding the actress $2 million in compensatory damages.
Heard is now said to be “broke” after lavish spending, and now mounting legal fees, with her lead attorney Elaine Charlson Bredehoft saying the actress is “absolutely not” able to pay the millions in damages she owes her ex-husband.
Additionally, Heard is now being sued by her insurer, New York Marine and General Insurance Co., which claims that her insurance policy does not cover any of the $8.3 million in losses that she owes Depp.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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