Johnny Depp Loses Defamation Suit Against Amber Heard on 'Wife Beater' Angle

A rather on-going facet throughout this entire time has been the legal and verbal battle between Amber Heard and Johnny Depp. From bad-mouthing about each other to putting an array of allegations, they have been at it and even filed multiple lawsuits against each other.

Now, a U.K. judge has delivered a rather anticipated opinion in the Depp defamation trial on his troubled relationship with Heard.

"This claim is dismissed," the judge said in his judgment. "The claimant has not succeeded in his action for libel. Although he has proved the necessary elements of his cause of action in libel, the defendants have shown that what they published in the meaning which I have held the words to bear was substantially true. I have reached these conclusions having examined in detail the 14 incidents on which the defendants rely as well as the overarching considerations which the claimant submitted I should take into account. In those circumstances, Parliament has said that a defendant has a complete defense. It has not been necessary to consider the fairness of the article or the defendants’ ‘malice’ because those are immaterial to the statutory defense of truth. The parties will have an opportunity to make submissions in writing as to the precise terms of the order which should follow my decision."

Depp's lawsuit against News Group Newspapers, publisher of The Sun, is part of the fallout from his split with Heard, whom he was married to between 2015 and 2017. During the contentious divorce proceedings, her allegations of being the victim of abuse made noise worldwide and continues to be the subject of courtroom scrutiny in multiple cases including one in Virginia where Depp is directly suing Heard for defamation. Depp has consistently denied slapping her across the face, among various alleged acts, and in fact, has pointed his finger at Heard as being the culprit of physical wrongdoing.

Keep reading this space for further updates.