Amber Heard sued by insurer over $8.3M Johnny Depp trial verdict
Actress Amber Heard sits in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Virginia, on April 14, 2022. (Photo by SHAWN THEW/POOL/AFP via Getty Images) ( )
LOS ANGELES - Amber Heard's insurer is suing the actress in Los Angeles, alleging in federal court that the actress' policy does not cover any of the $8.3 million in losses ex-husband Johnny Depp won against her in their highly publicized defamation trial, according to court documents obtained Sunday.
While Heard — whom the insurer says lives in the Los Angeles area — had a $1 million liability policy with New York Marine and General Insurance Co., the policy does not cover "willful" misconduct, which is exactly what the jury in the defamation case found she was liable for, according to the complaint filed Friday.
The insurance company says the jury found the defamation Heard committed against the "Pirates of the Caribbean" star was both willful and "malicious."
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Depp sued Heard for defamation in Virginia following an article she wrote for The Washington Post in 2018 that alleged abuse against her from an unnamed partner. The live-streamed trial lasted six weeks with the jury unanimously deciding that Depp was defamed by the 36-year-old "Aquaman" actress and that she "acted with actual malice."
Depp was awarded over $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, while Heard won $2 million in her countersuit against Depp. Her attorney fees add up to more than $6 million, according to court papers.
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In its lawsuit, New York Marine is asking a federal judge to order that the insurer be absolved of any duty to pay for Heard's defense in the defamation case, that it not be required to pay the multimillion-dollar judgment Depp won against her, and that it not have to pay any costs of ongoing litigation associated with an appeal.
The defamation case was filed in Virginia because computer servers for The Washington Post and its printing plant are located there.
In papers filed Friday, Heard's attorneys are asking for a mistrial in the Depp case based on claims of juror misconduct.