Virginia jury finds Amber Heard defamed Johnny Depp, awards $10 million

On 1 June 2022, a jury in Fairfax County, Virginia, delivered its verdict in the defamation trial brought by actor Johnny Depp against his ex-wife, actress Amber Heard. The six-week trial was televised and streamed, and it drew huge global attention on social media.

Depp sued over a 2018 op-ed Heard wrote in The Washington Post about domestic abuse. The article did not name him, but he argued it clearly referred to him and damaged his career. The jury found that three statements in the piece were defamatory and made with actual malice, meaning knowledge of falsity or reckless disregard for the truth. It awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, which the judge reduced to the state cap of $350,000.

The jury also found in Heard's favour on one counterclaim, a statement by Depp's lawyer, and awarded her $2 million. The case mattered because it reshaped public debate over the actor's reputation and his standing in the film industry, which is why later career moves, including his return to major projects, are still read against this verdict. Heard later appealed, and the two settled in December 2022.