Law&Crime Sidebar - Amber Heard Files Notice Of Appeal, Citing Unfair Verdict

Episode Date: July 21, 2022

As expected, actress Amber Heard alerts the Virginia Court of Appeals that she will appeal the $10.35 million judgment awarded to Johnny Depp during the defamation trial. But the question remains: will Johnny Depp appeal the $2 million judgment awarded to Heard due to statements made by his attorney, Adam Waldman, to the Daily Mail in 2020. PLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW:Get 10% OFF your first month of online therapy with BetterHelp at https://www.betterhelp.com/sidebar. GUESTS:Katherine Lizardo, Attorney LAW&CRIME SIDEBAR PRODUCTION:YouTube Management - Bobby SzokePodcasting - Sam GoldbergVideo Editing - Michael DeiningerGuest Booking - Alyssa FisherSocial Media Management - Kiera BronsonSUBSCRIBE TO OUR OTHER PODCASTS:Court JunkieObjectionsThey Walk Among AmericaCoptales and CocktailsSpeaking FreelyLAW&CRIME NETWORK SOCIAL MEDIA:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lawandcrime/Twitter: https://twitter.com/LawCrimeNetworkFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/lawandcrimeTwitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lawandcrimenetworkTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lawandcrimeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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keep you on the edge of your seat. Don't let your fears take hold of you as you dive into this addictive series. Love thrillers with a paranormal twist? The entire Oracle trilogy is available on Audible. Listen now on Audible. Question, the statement was false. Answer, yes. Question, the statement has a defamatory implication about Mr. Depp. Answer, yes. As expected, Amber Hurd has filed a notice of appeals with Virginia's Court of Appeals. That means she believes serious errors were made in the trial with Johnny Depp, and she will ask that the $10.35 million judgment be vacated. I'm Ann Jeanette Levy, and welcome to this latest edition of Law &

Crime's Sidebar podcast. This document was filed on Thursday morning, and it was just around the time of the deadline set by Judge Ascarati, who said it had to be filed within 30 days of June 24th. That is when the judgment in the case was finalized. Cameras weren't in the courtroom, of course, for that, but we were there and we saw how it unfolded. So joining me to talk a little bit about this is Catherine Lazardo. She is a plaintiff's attorney out of Texas and has followed this case closely with me, and I know you know her from law and crime and from being here on Sidebar. So Catherine, welcome back to Sidebar. Thanks for coming on. Thanks for having me again, I'm Janet. So I want to answer some questions that I know that the listeners and viewers have. People are asking,

did she file the suspension bond? And we know that she filed the $500 bond required to file the notice of appeal. And she hasn't filed the suspension bond yet. I verified this with the Fairfax County Clerk of Courts. So explain to the listeners and the viewers why that happened. For now, Amber Heard only needs to file the appeals bond. In Virginia, there are two types of bond that she had to post to file her appeal. The notice of appeal, which she filed today, must be filed with a $500 appeal bond that's required. It's almost, if you think about it as a procedural payment of administrative, payment to $500. But the suspension bond is completely separate from actually starting the appeal

process. The suspension bond is only if Amber Heard does not want Johnny Depp to collect the $3.35 million of judgment while the appeal is going, then Amber Heard has to pose that. And it's just logical for Amber Heard to pose that because why appeal, if you're not going to post the suspension bond and Johnny Depp can collect that for you. That's why usually the suspension bond comes right after you file the notice of appeal. But procedurally, just for now, she only needed to file a notice of appeal and the $500 appeal bond. This episode of Law and Crime's Sidebar podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp. I know that I've had some times in my life that were pretty rough and I was very sad and depressed. One of those times was after I lost my dad.

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discount. Amber Heard's attorney, Elaine Brettahoff, Catherine, the day after the verdict, had said on the Today Show that Amber Heard did not have the money to pay this judgment. So if she doesn't have the money to pay the judgment. Would her insurance company, Travelers Insurance, possibly put this money up in the suspension bond, you know, with the 10.35 million plus 6% annually that the judge outlined in the hope that she would win on appeal and they might be able to recoup some of the money. That's a very interesting question on Jeanette. Right now we see that travelers, her homeowner insurance, has sued New York Marine, which is another insurance that Amber Hurd has and has sued Amber Heard separately for the attorney's fees and costs and also indemnity duties that those insurance companies have.

And indemnity duties, meaning they have the duty to pay the judgment of $10.35 million. So that is still a question out there. I highly doubt that travelers, and especially New York Marine, would put up the appeal, the suspension bond for Amber Heard right now. So it will be interesting where she will get this because the judgment was and the verdict was about actual malice. There's intentional, willful act that was found. And that is an explicit exclusion in Amber Heard's insurance policy that both travelers and New York Marine does not have to pay the judgment if she is found with actual malice. And that's what we have here right now. So it would be a gamble for them to do it, to post a suspension bond on her behalf.

Amber Hurd's team issued a statement along with this notice of appeal, and it says, we believe the court made errors that prevented a just and fair verdict consistent with the First Amendment. We are therefore appealing the verdict. While we realize today's filing will ignite the Twitter bonfires, there are steps we need to take to ensure both fairness and justice, signed spokesperson for Amber Hurd. Your reaction. to that statement because I find that interesting given that some of Amber Heard's very, you know, staunch supporters have taken to Twitter and launched their own kind of bonfires. They've set quite a few fires directed at very many people. So I find it interesting that they're saying that this

is going to ignite something when people on their side have done just the same. I agree. I think it will ignite Twitter and other social media platform all simultaneously from both sides, Johnny Depp supporters and Amber Heard supporter. And what's interesting about that statement is they give us a glimpse of what the issues or one of the issues that Amber Heard's team will appeal, which is the First Amendment. Now, there are other issues that they could raise as well and we'll have to wait for that because right now we only have the notice of appeal. And it's just a short filing with the court that says, I'm filing a notice of a law.

appeal. Now, what happens after they file the notice of appeal? The circuit court clerk, which is Judge Ascarati's clerk, will have to prepare the record on appeal. And that takes about 90 days. The deadline is about 90 days from the date of the notice of appeal, which is 90 days from today. And Johnny Depp's team, for their part, issued a statement as well, Catherine. And it's almost like these things came out almost immediately. It was very quickly, like one after the other, one with anticipating the other. It's almost like they're coordinating, but you know they're not. And Johnny Depp's team's statement says, the jury listened to the extensive evidence presented during the six-week trial and came to a clear and unanimous verdict that the defendant

herself defamed Mr. Depp in multiple instances. We remain confident in our case and that this verdict will stand. Spokesperson for Johnny Depp says that today. So, Catherine, they have to say that. But do you believe this verdict will stand? Because there are people with different opinions. There are some people who believe this could be vacated on appeal. What is your belief? I believe this verdict will stand. As Judge Ascarati issued in her last order in response to Amber Heard's motion to a new trial and to set aside the verdict, she said, whatever the evidence we've heard for the passing, weeks that supports the verdict that the jury who deliberated and was very thoughtful about their verdict stands so I think the Court of Appeal will also feel the same way what's interesting about Johnny Depp's team statement is they did not give us any indication if they will also file a notice of appeal as to

Adam Waldman's statement this was an ambush a hoax they set mr. Depp up my calling the cops, but the first attempt didn't do the trick. The officers came to the penthouses, thoroughly searched an interview, and left after seeing no damage to face or property. So Amber and her friends spilled a little wine and roughed the place up, got their story straight under the direction of a lawyer and a publicist, and then placed a second call to 911. Do you see that statement? I do. Did you make those statements? there are two parts to what you've shown me the first part didn't have quotation marks around it and i'm not asking about that i i'm sorry said nothing could be considered credible that's not

quoting me the part with the quote marks i believe i said that yes and i've asked about that and we don't have an answer on that just yet but it is interesting in the judgment they objected they listed their objections to the verdict but didn't say whether or not they plan to appear And so it makes you wonder, will Johnny Depp just write a $2 million check or will he appeal this? Because, Catherine, I know that Linda Kennedy-Badden has told me in the past, you know, one of our hosts on crime, that she believes that that would be overturned on appeal. What do you make of that, the judgment against Depp for Waldman's statements? I think the same way, too, because it seems that that second statement that was an issue was just so

convoluted and could be confusing for the jury that that judgment might be questionable in terms of whether it has supported evidence and whether there were any errors there. So I actually believe that Johnny Depp will file a notice of appeal regarding that statement, especially since, like you mentioned, they filed that objection as an exhibit, which you don't necessarily see in a final order. I've never seen that before. So why put it there? I think that was a statement that we will file an appeal. So I expect that to come soon. So, Catherine, what happens next?

What happens next is so they filed a notice of appeal. The court clerk, which is Judge Escarati's clerk, will now have to prepare the record on appeal. And what that is is the appeal is not a new trial. It will be based on the evidence that was presented at the trial and the transcripts and the state. of facts. So the court clerk has 90 days from today the notice of appeal was filed to prepare the record and then transmit that to the court of appeal. I used to be an extern for the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeal and that was a federal level and this is a state level, but the procedures are very much similar. And in appeal, whatever that record is, the court of appeal will be limited

to that. So that's why now the parties, and I'm talking about Amherd's team and Johnny Depp's team, has to look at the record that the court clerk will transmit to the court of appeal and make sure everything they need for their arguments are there. Now, I have to emphasize, it is the party's responsibility to prepare that record and to make sure that that's correct. Of course, the court clerk will prepare some of those records and transmit it. But remember, Remember how Amber Hurd's legal team in their last motion was questioning how it was not their job to make sure that the juror was who he was, the juror for 15 issue, but Judge Ascarati in her order said, nope, the statute says it is the partner's responsibility to ensure that

the jury information is correct. So here it is Amber Hurd's legal team's responsibility and Johnny Deppes as well to make sure that the record and appeal is correct. So let's see if anything in that line of argument will come up later on if the appeal is to keep the, to affirm the trial court verdict. Well, and let's keep in line, too. She said she pulled the summons and attached it to that order, and she said the summons didn't have a birth date on it. So that is what the judge said about it. Exactly. And just looking at my notes real quickly here, where people are probably wondering, well, what's their argument? Because today, they only filed a notice of appeal. The actual appellate brief doesn't get filed until much later on. The appeal's process takes a while. As I mentioned,

it takes 90 days to prepare the record that the trial court had. After that 90 days, that Amber Heard and Johnny Depp has about, you know, 40 more days to submit their opening brief and also whatever their legal arguments are. So it would take a while. We're looking at around November or December when we would really see their appellate briefs and what their arguments are. So you believe it'll be November or December for an actual brief to be filed? Yes, exactly. Just because of the. statutory timeline. That's when we'll see their briefs and you'll be thick. Well, couldn't they ask for an extension too? I've seen that in a lot of appeals where they request an extension of 30

days or something like that because things, you know, a record like this is pretty voluminous. Yes. And they could definitely request an extension. But if they don't, then that's the timeline that we're looking at. And then afterwards, once they both presented their appellate brief, and their reply briefs, that's when the Court of Appeal will schedule the oral argument hearings unless they summarily, meaning they just say without oral arguments, that were affirming the verdict in the trial court. Come soon. Okay.

Well, we will wait and see. Catherine Lazardo, thanks so much as usual for coming on. We appreciate it. Thank you. And, Jeanette. And that's it for this edition of Law and Crime Sidebar Podcast. I'm Janette Levy. Thanks so much for joining us.

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