The Lawsuits Thread

[Chocolat]

From The Blast

Amber Heard Appears In Virginia Court To Battle Johnny Depp, Her Personal Diary Ordered Sealed





Depp's attorney Adam Waldman said in statement following the decision, "Amber Heard hired Harvey Weinstein’s abuse-specializing #Timesup lawyer Roberta Kaplan. Knowing it was a hail mary, today Amber Heard appeared herself in Virginia court to watch her new lawyer’s lose her attempt to hide all the evidence of Heard’s abuse hoax from the public. Chief Judge White rejected Kaplan’s arguments, and ruled that only medical records, personal information like social security numbers, and Ms. Heard’s personal diary (which oddly was not turned over during divorce discovery 3 years ago) will be sealed. Realizing the evidence including eyewitness testimony will all now be public, Kaplan immediately cancelled all her scheduled depositions of eyewitnesses. Amber Heard’s deposition is September 27, unless she tries to run from it."

[ForeverYoung]

From The Blast

Amber Heard Appears In Virginia Court To Battle Johnny Depp, Her Personal Diary Ordered Sealed





Depp's attorney Adam Waldman said in statement following the decision, "Amber Heard hired Harvey Weinstein’s abuse-specializing #Timesup lawyer Roberta Kaplan. Knowing it was a hail mary, today Amber Heard appeared herself in Virginia court to watch her new lawyer’s lose her attempt to hide all the evidence of Heard’s abuse hoax from the public. Chief Judge White rejected Kaplan’s arguments, and ruled that only medical records, personal information like social security numbers, and Ms. Heard’s personal diary (which oddly was not turned over during divorce discovery 3 years ago) will be sealed. Realizing the evidence including eyewitness testimony will all now be public, Kaplan immediately cancelled all her scheduled depositions of eyewitnesses. Amber Heard’s deposition is September 27, unless she tries to run from it."

She showed up in her church clothes (I'm guessing she wore a bra this time) hoping the Judge would take some kind of pity on her but it didn't work because even a judge can see through bad acting.

[Ruby Begonia]

Curious as to why AquaTurd showed up in court today with Kaplan. Sounds like Adam Waldman was there along with Ben Chew. Hope they scared the living daylights out of Scamber since, sadly, they can't drop a house on her.

She was reportedly dressed in her usual court attire of white top/ black bottoms. No word on whether her eyes were downcast, lips quivering, hair mousy, or face makeup-free . So far, no pap shots of her breaking into sobs in the back of a Virginia limo.

Maybe Kaplan thought Amber appearing would help her case. Maybe Scamber wanted to check out Judge White to see if he's the type who'd succumb to her charms and dismiss her case. Arrogant, demanding Amber must be at her expensive legal team since she's not had any success so far fighting the defamation suit, and she went to see for herself exactly how hard these servant attorneys are working for Queen Mera.

[meeps]

He stated in an interview he hurt his back in POTC. He was also injured by a horse in Lone Ranger

They are following the same tactic tmg tried. Not just the defaming using his past but claiming drug and alcohol makes him violent (tmg claimed he cursed at them and verbally abused them) but taking it a step further. That he doesn’t remember his behavior at his worst. (Their claim not saying it’s true). Tmg took the tactic that they told him and he doesn’t remember. Stephen fell into by repeating her claim. I told him (that you told me) he kicked you...depp can’t possibly remember things that didn’t happen Gaslighting 101

Yes, Lbock, I remember reading about the back injury - not what caused it but that he was receiving physical therapy in-between takes cause he was in such pain. He also suffered some nerve damage to his foot during POTC DMC when he was strapped onto that giant wheel thing for hours at a time. He spoke about it a bit on some live interview he did. He always seemed to downplay stuff like that. The only point here is Johnny, unfortunately, had very legitimate reasons to be on pain meds quite frequently.

As one of Johnny's employers I would like to 'order' him to take better care of himself, and let the stuntmen do their work!
Yes, he's willing to go through a lot for our entertainment, and I love him for that, but knowing that it literally hurts him to do so takes away a great deal of my entertainment
Yeah, I am a hen mother, but that can't be helped - I was hatched that way

Amber dressing up as a spinster schoolmarm in an old movie, and behaving accordingly, probably just irritates the judge. If he has done just a little bit of research online to check, who the parties in the case are, he will know, that that is not at all how she usually dress and behave!

[Ruby Begonia]

Adam Waldman stated this lawsuit against Heard is "the tip of a defamation iceberg."

Who else will he go after if he wins this and the Dan Wooten/The Sun case?

Ion Toilet? Refinery 29?
Decadenet Amanda and her Girl Gaze?
Washington Post? ACLU?

Scott Mendelson of Forbes has taken the opportunity in every article about Depp to reference the abuse allegations like a dog with a bone, but I think he avoided specifically calling him a wife beater; still shows how her allegations harmed his reputation and career. I've noticed some critics now just leave Johnny completely out of reviews of movies where he has a significant role (Barbarians).

Other industry influencers who defamed him online or in print like Scott Weinberg ( Sr. Writer for The Hollywood Reporter)? I just checked, and these tweets related to JD's Grindelwald comic con appearance are still there. Gee, so-called ethical movie "journalist" Scott Weinberg is the Judgment King. Hope he doesn't have any skeletons in his closet or a women ready to claim he abused her.

Scott Weinberg (@scottEweinberg) Tweeted:
Alternate headline: Alcoholic wife-beater tricks someone else into giving him money.

https://t.co/hEqYvD1uiq https://twitter.com/scottEweinberg/stat ... 90528?s=17

Search Twitter Conversation
Scott Weinberg@scottEweinberg
I say he was good until I realized he was a wife beater.
5:32 PM · May 13, 2017·TweetDeck
12 Retweets 66 Likes

Scott Weinberg (@scottEweinberg) Tweeted:
Anyone attending Comic Con leave the hall when John Depp walked on stage? https://twitter.com/scottEweinberg/stat ... 49185?s=17[/Link]

Replying to
@scottEweinberg
Disney - fire James Gunn for old tweets (idiots, imo)
WB - ok with a wife-beater promoting a family film.
Think I'll pass on this film.
3:26 PM · Jul 21, 2018·Twitter for Android

Maybe some smarter person here can post these tweets better. I am sure there are more. David Edelstein hates Johnny, too, so I'll guess some gold could be found there.

[ForeverYoung]

I know this is off the subject but here is an article about Johnny's sciatica while filming POTC.

https://www.celebritydiagnosis.com/2011 ... therspoon/

[Lbock]

Curious as to why AquaTurd showed up in court today with Kaplan. Sounds like Adam Waldman was there along with Ben Chew. Hope they scared the living daylights out of Scamber since, sadly, they can't drop a house on her.

She was reportedly dressed in her usual court attire of white top/ black bottoms. No word on whether her eyes were downcast, lips quivering, hair mousy, or face makeup-free . So far, no pap shots of her breaking into sobs in the back of a Virginia limo.

Maybe Kaplan thought Amber appearing would help her case. Maybe Scamber wanted to check out Judge White to see if he's the type who'd succumb to her charms and dismiss her case. Arrogant, demanding Amber must be at her expensive legal team since she's not had any success so far fighting the defamation suit, and she went to see for herself exactly how hard these servant attorneys are working for Queen Mera.

I’m betting Amber was there to star in her big win. (Was she dressed like the Amish. Very sad face and victim stance cowering to the judge. Betting she wore a bra that day but I’m sure DM will report on that—shocked no pap photos yet)

I think they are flabbergasted the judge not just denied her but left such a limited protective list. Jd team now must confer with her team by sept 20 to submit a joint limited protective order. Adam said they cancelled all their scheduled depos. They are scrambling. My guess their last Hail Mary pass is that demurrer they recently filed.

[SnoopyDances]

I'm not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV, but I have been on jury duty more times than I can count (federal, criminal, and civil).
All lawyers work the same way and the US legal system is far from perfect.

So bare with me while I try to explain what typically happens in trials by jury.

First: Johnny is suing for defamation (not domestic abuse), claiming that her hoax and the op-ed piece has diminished his career and cost him work/money.

This makes Johnny the plaintiff and Amber the defendant.

Important: In US law, the burden of proof is on the plaintiff. Johnny's team has to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that she defamed him intentionally in her op-ed piece and the result of her actions cost him work/money.

As the defendant, AH does not have to prove anything. She does not have to prove she is innocent of any charge or allegation, nor does she have to testify.

Beyond a reasonable doubt is the key phrase. Not ALL doubt, just reasonable doubt.

What every defense attorney attempts to do is poke holes in the plaintiff's case...whatever evidence or witness testimony they have, the defense will attempt to disallow or discredit it. AH's team will do whatever they can to create reasonable doubt among the jury.

The plaintiff will bring forth their evidence and state their case first. Then it's the defendant's turn. Each side will get to question any evidence or testimony and make final statements to the jury before deliberations.

A pretrial judge will determine which evidence and testimony will be allowed at trial. Both sides will get to review all allowable evidence in order to prepare their case. In many cases, the pretrial judge is not the same as the trial judge. This means the trial judge is hearing all of the evidence for the first time during the trial.

The defense will paint Johnny as a delusional, dysfunctional, addict with a history of violent acts and therefore is responsible for his own demise, not Amber nor her op-ed piece. (TMG and Bloom did the same thing.)

In short, the #MeToo lawyer will blame the victim/plaintiff.

They will dredge up every instance in Johnny's past that alludes to substance abuse, arrests, violent or erratic behavior, arguments with previous girlfriends, family, friends, even his kids if they deem it necessary.

For example, his arrest in the NY hotel with Kate Moss (maybe they show his arrest record, how much damage was done to the room, how much did he pay, subpoena Kate, Bloom, hotel personnel, police, etc. Or the incident in London with a pregnant Vanessa and the paparazzi. Perhaps even River Pheonix's death outside the Viper Room from a drug overdose that led to rumors about Johnny supplying the drugs.

They will undoubtedly bring up the recent lawsuits with TMG, Bloom, the bodyguards, the guy fired from "City of Lies", etc. They may bring in TMG, Bloom, or any of the aforementioned to testify against Johnny, which would allow them to divulge the nature of any settlements reached. They may bring in Tracy Jacobs whose firm released Johnny.

They may bring in some expert to testify that children from abusive homes often grow up to be abusive, this will bring in Betty Sue, his father, and stepfather. Maybe even Christi and Deb.

They may bring up past interviews where he confesses to using drugs and alcohol, former co-stars/directors/crew. And site various violent characters he's portrayed -- what was he like while creating those characters. Maybe even the burning underwear incident on the "21 Jump Street" set.

Anything that would paint Johnny in an unfavorable light to the jury and create a sense that maybe AH could have been defending herself, that he is a monster, that she didn't lie in the op-ed, and that she is not responsible for his demise. Maybe if she did hit him, it was in self-defense, etc. Reasonable doubt.

Second: This pretrial posturing is typical. Both sides will threaten to use this or that, subpoena so-and-so, etc., in the hopes that the other side backs down in some way.

The plaintiff hopes to scare the dickens out of AH by their overwhelming evidence and what it could do to her career/future. Subpeona her friends and force them to testify to the hoax. Subpeona current/former lovers to testify about those relationships. Anything that would paint her as the aggressor in Johnny's relationship.

Perhaps expert testimony that a true victim of DV (who claims to have been in constant fear for her life for five years) does not have affairs, is not in control of any money or allowed any freedoms, is usually separated from family and friends that may try to protect or save her, etc. Then produce evidence that shows what a great life AH really had in the relationship.

The defense will threaten to dredge up Johnny's past, threaten to use his family and friends to testify against him, reveal any medical (or mental) evaluations/insurance policies from movie studios/rehab stints, etc. Perhaps they hope that Johnny will try to protect his family, children, lovers, etc., from this scrutiny and back down.

Neither side wants a jury to decide their fate. Juries are too fickle.

[Chocolat]

Thank you SnoopyDances for your outline of pretrial and trial procedure and putting it all in perspective for us. I'm glad you pointed out as a reminder that this is a defamation lawsuit and not for abuse. However, in my opinion, the evidence of Amber Heard's abuse toward Johnny does support her intentions of hurting him on many levels, be it physically, mentally, emotionally and publicly for her own selfishness. I believe her OpEd was written in order to climb the activist ladder and gain approval status, clearing away any doubt about the hoax suspicion. She isn't very good at back pedaling when attempting to clarify that the article wasn't about Johnny. I'm eager to read what she has to say about that when questioned, under oath, in her upcoming deposition.

[justintime]

Your excellent explanation of what typically happens in a US trial by jury, including some “for example(s)” not recently referenced, is almost too good, SnoopyDances. AH’s arrogant TimesUp lawyer does not seem as up to date on her JD history as she needs to be given all the background info she expected Johnny to cough up free of charge for her and her lame team. I hope Johnny continues to stay mum on mentioning long-ago events that could be twisted into fodder for leveling more fabricated accusations.

[meeps]

Amen to all things already said! And also a big thanks a lot from me, Snoopy I just want to add that I hope Johnny and his team are aware of Brian's videos on YouTube. They are excellent, in my opinion

[Chocolat]

Amen to all things already said! And also a big thanks a lot from me, Snoopy I just want to add that I hope Johnny and his team are aware of Brian's videos on YouTube. They are excellent, in my opinion

Yes, meeps, I do believe that Johnny and his legal team are aware of Brian's excellent videos from the very first one that was posted on YouTube. In fact, because of Johnny's fans identifying the mystery man in the elevator clip with AH as James Franco, that discovery became part of Adam Waldman's documentation. Whether or not James Franco will be called for a deposition remains to be seen.

[meeps]

Great

[justintime]

Adam Waldman stated this lawsuit against Heard is "the tip of a defamation iceberg."

Who else will he go after if he wins this and the Dan Wooten/The Sun case?

Ion Toilet? Refinery 29?
Decadenet Amanda and her Girl Gaze?
Washington Post? ACLU?

Scott Mendelson of Forbes has taken the opportunity in every article about Depp to reference the abuse allegations like a dog with a bone, but I think he avoided specifically calling him a wife beater; still shows how her allegations harmed his reputation and career. I've noticed some critics now just leave Johnny completely out of reviews of movies where he has a significant role (Barbarians).

Other industry influencers who defamed him online or in print like Scott Weinberg ( Sr. Writer for The Hollywood Reporter)? I just checked, and these tweets related to JD's Grindelwald comic con appearance are still there. Gee, so-called ethical movie "journalist" Scott Weinberg is the Judgment King. Hope he doesn't have any skeletons in his closet or a women ready to claim he abused her.

Scott Weinberg (@scottEweinberg) Tweeted:
Alternate headline: Alcoholic wife-beater tricks someone else into giving him money.

https://t.co/hEqYvD1uiq https://twitter.com/scottEweinberg/stat ... 90528?s=17

Search Twitter Conversation
Scott Weinberg@scottEweinberg
I say he was good until I realized he was a wife beater.
5:32 PM · May 13, 2017·TweetDeck
12 Retweets 66 Likes

Scott Weinberg (@scottEweinberg) Tweeted:
Anyone attending Comic Con leave the hall when John Depp walked on stage? https://twitter.com/scottEweinberg/stat ... 49185?s=17[/Link]

Replying to
@scottEweinberg
Disney - fire James Gunn for old tweets (idiots, imo)
WB - ok with a wife-beater promoting a family film.
Think I'll pass on this film.
3:26 PM · Jul 21, 2018·Twitter for Android

Scott W

Maybe some smarter person here can post these tweets better. I am sure there are more. David Edelstein hates Johnny, too, so I'll guess some gold could be found there.

Well done, RubyBegonia! We sure don’t need a “smarter person”, just a few dozen more with your perseverance. Thank you.

I hope Mr. Waldman is mentioning the “tip of a defamation iceberg” with the full intent and the ammunition needed to ensure judicial justice is visited upon each and every one of these vile cowards you have mentioned and more.

There is absolutely nothing “ethical” about the journalistic practices of “dog-with-a-bone” Scott Mendelson at Forbes when it comes to JD and abuse allegations; of Scott Weinberg’s “wife beater” tweets as JD took the stage as Grindelwald at Comic Con, 2018; of the inability of film critic David Edelstein of New York magazine/Vulture/Slate to professionally review Johnny’s films without venting his own blatantly intense personal dislike for the actor going all the way back to Scissorhands days, and more recently, following the lead of the critics pack by damning Depp’s acting skills with tabloid-like insinuations regrading his personal life: ”His perpetually slurring, unbalanced Sparrow seems too true to life to be funny.” Vulture, May 25, 2017 ; of Variety’s choice (06/21/18) to publicly label JD “a PR liability” after the Rolling Stone profile - a slanderous comment that is still accessible today, not to mention influential.

But it has been AH’s inflammatory written and spoken word choices since 2016 that have unequivocally and damningly defamed Johnny Depp, shredding his reputation and career beyond anything even remotely reparable in his lifetime. Her sick, unabating, campaign seems to have somehow issued a free-for-all, license-to-defame-Johnny-Depp to anyone with a media platform of any variety. The callously casual use of hair-trigger words and phrases can, and in Johnny’s extremely high profile case have already, spawned the self-serving attachment of inexcusably vile descriptive phrases and words to his name, likely never to be forgotten. The links below show how just recently (September 10, 2019!) his name was tossed in with a group accused of sexual violence, perhaps the direct result of the Washington Post Op-Ed title.

https://twitter.com/FemCondition/status ... 8360997891

https://dailytitan.com/2019/09/sexual-p ... rt-crimes/

https://www.thecut.com/2018/12/amber-he ... women.html

Ms. Bernadette Steele should be added to Mr. Waldman’s list.

[nebraska]

And yet again I shake my head in bewilderment. How did he allow himself to be taken in? How did he not see any of this coming? How did she manage to maneuver herself into his life in spite of all the people surrounding Johnny who should have been protecting him? It's like a really bad B movie.