What are the lawsuits that Amber Heard has filed against Johnny Depp?
The very public court battle between the two has revealed many intricacies into their strange and disfunctional relationship.
In one of the most volatile celebrity break-ups in recent years, the lawsuits between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are finally at a stage in which court proceedings have begun. Both sides are alleging different things in their relationship, which has produced two multi-million dollar lawsuits that will be decided in the coming weeks.
What is being argued in the courtroom?
In the divorce back in 2016 Heard was granted a restraining order against Depp, alleging that he had assaulted and abused her throughout their relationship.
Depp sued Heard back in March 2019 after she had written an article in the Washington Post which he alleges was defamatory. The article says that Heard was the victim of domestic abuse, with the implication being that Depp was the one who was the abuser. The pair were married for 18 months.
“Like many women, I had been harassed and sexually assaulted by the time I was of college age. But I kept quiet - I did not expect filing complaints to bring justice. And I didn’t see myself as a victim”, she wrote.
“Then two years ago, I became a public figure representing domestic abuse, and I felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out.”
Depp responded by suing Heard for damages ranging up to $50 million, though his name is not explicitly mentioned in the article. She countersued for $100 million, leading to the situation playing out in the courts at the moment.
What has happened in the courtroom so far?
Depp is in the third day of his testimony against Heard.
“It could begin with a slap,” Mr Depp said. “It could begin with throwing a TV remote at my head. It could be throwing a glass of wine in my face.”
“She has a need for conflict. She has a need for violence,” he said. And in recordings of the former couple played to the jury on Wednesday, Heard can be heard saying she “did start a physical fight” with Depp.
The jury has listened to evidence presented by the celebrity ex-couple’s former therapist, who described how Depp and Heard engaged in “mutual abuse”.
Heard has not yet begun her testimony to tell her side of the case and more high profile celebrities are to testify in the coming weeks.
The case is expected to last for another month.