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This week a seven-person jury ruled that Amber Heard defamed Johnny Depp in a 2018 op-ed in The Washington Post, ordering the actress to pay $10.35 million USD in compensatory and punitive damages. Elaine Charlson Bredehoft, an attorney for Heard, told NBC’s The Today Show that they plan to appeal the verdict.

“That’s because she was demonised here,” the attorney said on national television overnight. “A number of things were allowed in this court that should not have been allowed, and it caused the jury to be confused.”

Amber Heard
Credit: Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

Bredehoft added that Heard was “absolutely not” able to pay the $10.35 million USD in damages. She also noted that their legal team was not allowed to mention the 2020 libel case in the UK where the court found Depp committed at least 12 counts of domestic violence against Heard.

Following the verdict on Wednesday, Heard took to social media to express how disappointed she was with the result. “The disappointment I feel today is beyond words,” the actress wrote. “I’m heartbroken that the mountain of evidence still was not enough to stand up to the disproportionate power, influence and sway of my ex-husband.”

She continued, “I’m even more disappointed with what this verdict means for other women. It is a setback.”

The court found in the actress’ countersuit that a lawyer of Depp’s had defamed her when he claimed her allegations of abuse were a “hoax”. Heard is set to receive $2 million USD in damages.

Heard and Depp started dating in 2012 before they married in 2015. In 2016 Heard filed for divorce alleging Depp abused her. The Pirates of the Caribbean actor has denied all allegations made against him.

Court proceedings concluded last week with closing arguments after a lengthy six weeks of testimony. If the appeal does indeed go ahead, this is not the last we will hear of the case.