Johnny Depp Scores Court Win Against Former Lawyer as Judge Rejects Unwritten Contract

Johnny Depp scored a significant legal victory on Tuesday, as an L.A. Superior Court judge ruled that his contract with his lawyer should have been in writing.

Depp is seeking to recoup tens of millions of dollars in legal fees paid out to Jake Bloom over 18 years. The ruling could also have profound effects on legal dealings in Hollywood, where agreements are often based on a handshake rather than a written contract. Bloom was paid based on a percentage of the actor’s earnings. The relationship fell apart in 2017, as Depp was also fighting a legal war with the Management Group, his former management company.

Depp sued Bloom in October, arguing that the fee arrangement was effectively done on a contingency basis, which under California law must be in writing. Bloom countersued, arguing that Depp had failed to fully pay his legal bills and had violated the unwritten agreement. Bloom’s attorneys argued that the agreement was not a contingency arrangement, but Judge Terry Green disagreed.

There’s not a special rule for entertainment people,” Green said Tuesday. ”Why isn’t it in writing? Why not have something that memorializes the agreement so we don’t end up in court fighting like this?”


Bloom’s attorney, Ray Cardozo, argued that his fee arrangement is quite common, and that it differs significantly from the typical contingency agreement.

”With a contingency fee, you are speculating on an uncertain outcome,” Cardozo said. In Depp’s case, he argued the agreement was closer to a law firm doing work for a tech startup in exchange for equity rather than cash. ”You’re not speculating on an outcome… Your piece of Depp’s income can fluctuate.”

Green repeatedly stated that his relatives work in the entertainment business, so he has no particular hostility to it. But, he argued, the business should be bound by the same rules as everybody else.

”I grew up in a showbiz family,” the judge said. ”I am aware that showbiz people think they live in a different universe, but they don’t. They’re not a different universe.”

Green argued that the ups and downs of Depp’s career underscore the speculative nature of a fee arrangement based on his income.

”I don’t follow showbiz,” he said. ”I rarely go to movies. I know who the plaintiff is. I can’t tell you a whole lot about him except he’s had ups and downs in his career. Who would have known, 18 years ago, how high the highs are and how low the lows.”

Depp’s attorney, Fredrick Levin, was relatively quiet during the argument, except to echo the judge’s remarks.

”I think your honor has it exactly right,” Levin said. ”There’s no adequate explanation why this contract wasn’t in writing.”

The attorneys for both sides declined to comment outside court. The case is set for a trial on May 6, and Bloom’s attorneys may seek to appeal the judge’s ruling.

Sun fails in bid to halt Johnny Depp libel action over 'wife-beater' claim

Actor Johnny Depp has fought off a High Court bid to temporarily halt his libel action against The Sun over allegations that he beat his former wife Amber Heard.

A judge sitting in London on Wednesday rejected the newspaper’s application that his claim should be ”stayed unless and until” the star (pictured with Heard) confirmed in writing that he would not sue Heard if she participated in a forthcoming trial.

Mr Justice Nicklin ruled that such an order was not ”necessary” at this stage of the case.

He said the defendants, Sun publisher News Group Newspapers and journalist Dan Wootton, contended that Heard was a ”crucial” witness for their defence – which is that the allegations are true.

The Pirates Of The Caribbean star’s libel claim arises out of publication of an article in the Sun last April under the headline ”GONE POTTY How can JK Rowling be ‘genuinely happy’ casting wife-beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?”

Mr Justice Nicklin said the article ”concerned alleged incidents of domestic violence by Mr Depp against Ms Heard during their marriage”.

Depp’s case, he said, is that the article bears the meaning that he was ”guilty, on overwhelming evidence, of serious domestic violence against his then wife, causing significant injury and leading to her fearing for her life, for which the claimant was constrained to pay no less than Ј5m to compensate her, and which resulted in him being subjected to a continuing court restraining order – and for that reason is not fit to work in the film industry”.

Heard considered she was subject to ”confidentiality restrictions” in an August 2016 divorce agreement ”which prevent her from assisting the defendants with evidence to support their case”.

But, the judge announced: ”I am not satisfied on the current evidence that Ms Heard’s concerns about the restrictions that the divorce agreement imposes on her are well-founded.”

He that even if they were, ”the matter is capable of resolution”.

Mr Justice Nicklin said Depp had stated clearly in his evidence to the court that he expects Heard ”may well” give evidence in the proceedings, and ”he will not attempt to prevent that”.

He added: ”The fact that Ms Heard presently thinks that there is some impediment to her giving evidence for the defendants is nothing to do with Mr Depp.

”Even if she were right, there would appear to be a number of ways of resolving the issue that have not yet been explored adequately or at all.”

James Price QC, for Depp, told the judge during the hearing of the application that the actor had ”no fear” of Heard giving evidence at the High Court.

Depp, who denies beating Heard, would provide a ”raft” of evidence from independent witnesses who ”fundamentally contradict the evidence given by Ms Heard”, said Price.

He said the actor ”wants to stop false and defamatory publications”.

Adam Wolanski, for the defendants, told the judge they had ”pleaded a defence of truth”, and said Depp alleges that it was Heard, not him, who was the ”aggressor”.

The judge said: ”Whether the allegations of domestic violence are ultimately proved true is a matter for trial. At this stage, the court is not in a position to, and does not, make any findings at all.”

No date has been set for a trial.


https://www.pressgazette.co.uk/sun-fails-in...e-beater-claim/

https://theblast.com/johnny-depp-amber-heard-defamation-lawsuit/


Johnny Depp has filed a defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife, Amber Heard, alleging her domestic abuse claims were “an elaborate hoax” and he is going after her for a whopping $50 million.

According to court documents obtained by The Blast, Depp is taking issue with an article Heard wrote for the Washington Post in December 2018. The lawsuit states, “Ms. Heard purported to write from the perspective of ‘a public figure representing domestic abuse’ and claimed that she ‘felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out’ when she ‘spoke up against sexual violence.'”

Depp’s attorney acknowledges that she never mentions Depp by name, but says the entire article “depends on the central premise that Ms. Heard was a domestic abuse victim and that Mr. Depp perpetrated domestic violence against her.”

In the suit, Depp calls the “false allegations” against him “an elaborate hoax to generate positive publicity” for her and “advance her career.” The lawsuit strongly states that she is the one attacked him, claiming, “Ms. Heard is not a victim of domestic abuse; she is a perpetrator.”





He claims that Heard’s abuse claims were “conclusively refuted by two separate responding police officers, a litany of neutral third-party witnesses, and 87 newly obtained surveillance camera videos.”

A very publicized incident between the couple occurred on May 21, 2016, when Heard claimed Depp attacked her. Depp claims a neighbor gave a declaration saying “he repeatedly interacted with Ms. Heard, at close range, without makeup, and utterly unmarked and uninjured in the days between May 22 and May 27, 2016.”

The lawsuit also claims that two police officers “testified under oath that they closely observed Ms. Heard’s face in good light on May 21, 2016 and saw no signs of any injury.”




He claims the op-ed caused damage to his career, claiming that four days after the op-ed was published, he was dropped from “Pirates of the Caribbean.”

Johnny Depp’s attorney sums up everything by saying, “Ms. Heard also knew that her elaborate hoax worked: as a result of her false allegations against Mr. Depp, Ms. Heard became a darling of the #MeToo movement, was the first actress named a Human Rights Champion of the United Nations Human Rights Office, was appointed ambassador on women’s rights at the American Civil Liberties Union, and was hired by L’Oreal Paris as its global spokesperson.”

Depp is suing for defamation and asking for damages in excess of $50,000,000.

Eric George, an attorney for Amber Heard, tells The Blast, “This frivolous action is just the latest of Johnny Depp’s repeated efforts to silence Amber Heard. She will not be silenced. Mr. Depp’s actions prove he is unable to accept the truth of his ongoing abusive behavior. But while he appears hell-bent on achieving self-destruction, we will prevail in defeating this groundless lawsuit and ending the continued vile harassment of my client by Mr. Depp and his legal team.”


Amber Heard and Johnny Depp finalized their divorce in January 2017. She filed for divorce in May 2016 after just 15 months of marriage.

The couple married in a small ceremony at his home in Los Angeles and had another ceremony a few days later on Depp’s private island in the Bahamas. They met on the set of the 2011 movie, “The Rum Diary.”

The couple’s split was very acrimonious with Heard accusing Depp of domestic abuse. When the couple settled their divorce, with Heard receiving a $7 million payout from Depp, she turned around and donated a portion of the money to charities focused on helping to stop violence against women and the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

In an interview last year with British GQ, Johnny Depp denied he ever abused Heard, saying, “The thing that hurt me is being presented as something that you’re really as far away from as you could possibly get, you know?”