Johnny Depp’s lawyers say that Amber Heard’s words contributed to her defeat in court, not social media.
Depp launched a defamation lawsuit for $50 million against Heard in 2019, after the Aquaman star described herself as a victim of domestic abuse in a 2018 article she penned in The Washington Post.
Heard then countersued for $100 million as she claimed Depp’s legal team started a “smear campaign” against her.
The Aquaman star has been ordered by the court to pay more than $8 million to Depp in damages.
Camille Vasquez and Ben Chew explained to ABC’s George Stephanopoulos their legal strategy was to use Heard’s words against her. Vasquez explained that she believed this showed the jury who Heard really is.
Heard’s legal team claimed that jury was swayed by the online support for Depp. Chew explained that this “played no role whatsoever” as the jury came to their decision using the evidence presented in court.
Vasquez, who recently was promoted to partner at her law firm, said that this verdict has not in fact a setback to the #MeToo movement like Heard claimed in her statement following the result. The lawyer said:
“We encourage any victim to come forward. Domestic violence doesn’t have a gender.”
“The facts are what they were. The jury made a unanimous decision based on those facts.”
Watch the interview below:
Chew claims Depp was never interested in money and wanted nothing but the truth.
