Libel Liabilities

The Depp v. Heard defamation trial wrapped on Wednesday following seven weeks of court proceedings brought on by Johnny Depp’s libel suit against ex-wife Amber Heard, who later countersued. The civil matter materialized after Heard penned a December 2018 op-ed in which she referred to herself as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.”

While Johnny Depp, 58, was not present at the Fairfax County Circuit Court on Wednesday, fans of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star established quite a presence outside the northern Virginia courthouse to publicly celebrate the jury’s verdicts.

The jury found that Depp, who sought $50 million in damages, was indeed defamed by Amber Heard, 36, and was accordingly awarded $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages. The latter award will be adjusted from $5 million to $350,000, the limit for punitive damages in the state of Virginia.

Heard, who sought $100 million in damages via her countersuit, was found to have been defamed by Depp, and was awarded $2 million in compensatory damages and $0 in punitive damages.