Hollywood star may launch an appeal over ‘perverse and bewildering’ ruling that he assaulted his former wife
Johnny De pp may appeal against a" per verse and bewildering" High Court ruling which concluded that he assaulted ex-wife Amber Heard.
The 57- year-old had sued The Sun' s publisher, News Group Newspapers (NGN), over a 2018 article which labelled him a "wife beater".
In a ruling yesterday, Mr Justice Nicol dismissed the Pirates Of The Caribbean star's claim, saying NGN had proved what was in the article to be "substantially true".
He found that Mr De pp assaulted Ms Heard on a dozen occasions, putting her in "fear for her life" during three of them.
In a statement after the ruling, Mr Depp's solicitor, Jenny Afia, from Schillings law firm, said: "This decision is as perverse as it is bewildering.
"Most troubling is the judge's reliance on the testimony of Amber Heard, and corresponding disregard of the mountain of counter-evidence from police officers, medical practitioners, her own former assistant, other unchallenged witnesses and an array of documentary evidence which completely undermined the allegations, point by point.
"All of this was overlooked. The judgment is so flawed that it would be ridiculous for Mr Depp not to appeal this decision."
In the ruling, Mr Justice Nicol said he was" not persuaded" that an alleged" incident of violence" in Los Angeles in December 2014" constituted a physical assault of Ms Heard by Mr Depp".
The judge found that Mr Depp put Ms Heard "in fear of her life" during what the actress described as a "threeday hostage situation" in Australia in March 2015.
Ms Heard's US lawyer, Elaine Charlson Bredehoft, said the verdict was‘ not a surprise’ and revealed the actress's legal team will now be presenting more evidence in Mr Depp's separate lib el action being heard in Virginia against Ms Heard over a Washington Post opinion piece.
Ms Bredehoft said: "For those of us present for the London High Court trial, this decision and judgment are not a surprise.
"Very soon, we will be presenting even more volumi - nous evidence in the US."
It is believed the total legal costs of the case will be in the region of £3m to £5m.