Johnny Depp wins defamation trial: Check how much Amber Heard has to pay

Johnny Depp's ex-wife Amber Heard had defamed him in a 2018 op-ed, a jury in Virginia concluded on June 2. According to the verdict, Depp was defamed by Heard when she wrote in the op-ed that she was a “public figure representing domestic abuse,” However, it was also found that one of Depp’s lawyers had also defamed her.

The jury awarded Johnny Depp $15 million in compensation and punitive damages, but the court - due to legal restrictions - limited the punitive damages verdict to $10.35 million. The jury awarded Amber Heard $2 million in damages.

Amber Heard, after the verdict, said that she was “heartbroken”. “I believe Johnny's attorneys succeeded in getting the jury to overlook the key issue of Freedom of Speech and ignore evidence that was so conclusive that we won in the UK.”

Johnny Depp, too, released a statement on his Instagram account which read, "Six years ago, my life, the life of my children, the lives of those closest to me, and also, the lives of the people who for many, many years have supported and believed in me were forever changed. All in the blink of an eye."

"False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me. It had already travelled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career. And six years later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled," Johnny Depp wrote.

"My decision to pursue this case, knowing very well the height of the legal hurdles that I would be facing and the inevitable worldwide spectacle into my life, was only made after considerable thought. From the very beginning, the goal of bringing this case was to reveal the truth, regardless of the outcome. Speaking the truth was something that I owed to my children and to all those who have remained steadfast in their support of me. I feel at peace knowing I have finally accomplished that," Depp said.

Johnny Depp said that the best was yet to come and a new chapter had finally begun. "Veritas numquam perit. Truth never perishes," he said.

(With ANI inputs)