Johnny Depp’s lawyers have struck a deal with Amber Heard that could save her from paying millions she owes her ex-husband in compensation.
In their first televised interviews after the bombing trial, Ben Chu and Camille Vazquez said discussions were continuing over the sentence and the $ 8.35 million the Fairfax court ordered to pay Ms. Hurd.
In the first of two morning interviews, Good Morning America presenter George Stefanopoulos asked if Mr. Depp would waive his benefits if Ms. Hurd dropped her complaint. Lawyer Ben Chu said the case was “never about money” for Mr Depp.
“You said that the aim was not to impoverish Mrs Hurd – is it possible to see an agreement in which she waives the appeal in exchange for Mr Depp removing any monetary damage?” He asked. the host lawyers.
Mr Chu said he could not speak about his personal conversations with Mr Depp, but noted that the actor had testified and that was what the lawyers said in their closing statement.
“It was to restore his reputation and he did it,” he said.
“So you’re not revealing any privileges, but it looks like it’s something that may be on the table, but it depends on Mrs. Hurd?” Mr. Stefanopoulos asked.
“We have to be careful what we say, but it was about Mr Depp’s reputation, it was about him,” Mr Chu said.
Lawyers said Mr Depp was “on the moon” when he was told of the sentence.
“It’s as if the weight of the world has been lifted from his shoulders, and I feel that he has finally regained his life in six years,” Mr Chu said.
The lawyer became popular on social media during the six-week trial in Fairfax County Court in Virginia (Steve Helber / AP)
(AP)
Johnny Depp (AP Photo / Steve Helber, Pool)
(AP)
The jury handed down the verdict on June 1, awarding Mr. Depp $ 10 million in damages and $ 5 million in criminal damages following Ms. Hurd’s 2018 article in The Washington Post in which she claimed to have experienced domestic violence. .
Mr Depp received a total of $ 10.35 million in damages, as Virginia law limits criminal damages to $ 350,000. Ms. Hurd was awarded $ 2 million in damages for comments from Mr. Depp’s previous lawyer.
The trial began on Monday, April 11, in Fairfax, Virginia, following Depp’s trial in March 2019. Mr Depp claims that Ms. Hurd slandered him in an article entitled “I spoke out against sexual violence” and faced the wrath of our culture. That needs to change. “
Actress Amber Heard leaves Fairfax County Court on Friday, May 27, 2022 in Fairfax, Virginia
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Actor Amber Heard hugs lawyer Elaine Bredehoft after a jury said she believed she had slandered her ex-husband Johnny Depp
(Reuters)
Although Mr Depp was not mentioned in the article, his legal team claims that it contains a “clear implication that Mr. Depp is a domestic abuser”, which they consider to be “definitely and obviously untrue”.
In the same interview, Depp’s other lawyer, Camille Vazquez, said the actor was given a chance to “tell the truth for the first time” during the trial.
“It’s been six years in the process of being created and I think he was able to reach out to the jury and the general public and say what really happened in that regard,” she added.
“The facts in this case were extremely positive for Johnny, and the verdict speaks for itself.”
Ms Vazquez also rejected the idea that the sentence was an obstacle to the #MeToo movement.
“I think our answer to that is that we encourage every victim to come out – domestic violence has no gender,” she said. “The facts are as they were. The jury decided unanimously on the basis of these facts. “
Mr Chu said that “Johnny took ownership of a lot of things and sometimes it seemed, and maybe to the jury, that she was responsible for everything and didn’t take responsibility for anything, and I think that made a difference.”
Regarding her own fame on social media, Ms. Vazquez said: “To be honest, a little amazing, but if I can be an inspiration to young women who want to go to law school, study and work hard, then it was all worth it ”.
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