Hollywood star Johnny Depp lost a libel lawsuit against British newspaper, on Monday. The Sun branded him a “wife beater” in a case that laid bare his chaotic battle with drink and drugs and shattered his global reputation.
Depp will appeal against the decision.
Judge Andrew Nicol dismissed the 57-year-old actor’s claim at the High Court in London, saying the article had been proven to be “substantially true”.
The Sun welcomed the ruling, as did campaigners against violence towards women, saying it had “stood up and campaigned for the victims of domestic violence for over 20 years”.
“Domestic abuse victims must never be silenced and we thank the judge for his careful consideration and thank Amber Heard for her courage in giving evidence to the court,” it added.
But Depp’s lawyers called the judgement “as perverse as it is bewildering”,they argued that the court had disregarded a “mountain of counter-evidence” that “completely undermined” the claims.
Jenny Afia, partner at law firm Schillings, in this regard said,
“The judgement is so flawed that it would be ridiculous for Mr Depp not to appeal this decision.”
