Johnny Depp might not make his former wife Amber Heard pay the $10.35 million in damages that she owes him after losing the defamation trial, Depp's lawyer has suggested.
Last week, a Virginia jury determined that Heard should pay Depp $15 million in damages for defaming him while Depp was told to pay her $2 million. The amount Heard owed Depp was cut to $10.35 million, citing Virginia laws limiting punitive damages in defamation cases.
But, on Wednesday, Johnny Depp's lawyer Benjamin Chew suggested on a television show that Amber Heard may not have to pay the money after all.
When asked by Good Morning America host George Stephanopoulos whether Depp would say yes to a settlement where Heard agrees not to appeal the case in exchange for "Depp waiving any monetary damages," Chew hinted it was on the table.
"We obviously can't disclose any attorney-client communications, but as Mr Depp testified and as we both made clear in our respective closings, this was never about money for Mr Depp," Chew said on the show. "This was about restoring his reputation, and he's done that."
Meanwhile, Heard's lawyer Elaine Bredehoft had told another TV show host that her client simply couldn't afford to pay that much to Depp.
After the jury delivered its verdict, judge Penney Azcarate said she wouldn't issue an order reflecting the jury verdict until June 24, giving the former celebrity couple little more than two more weeks to decide about the future of the case.
If Depp and Heard agree to a settlement before June 24, then Azcarate may sign off on it than issue the jury verdict against both of them.
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