24 déc. 2020 - DAILY MAIL Lawyers for JD tell Court of Appeal he 'did not receive a fair trial'

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Lawyers for Johnny Depp have told the Court of Appeal he 'did not receive a fair trial,' and say the ruling that he assaulted Amber Heard and left her fearing for her life is 'plainly wrong'.

The Pirates of the Caribbean actor, 57, sued The Sun's publishers, News Group Newspapers, for libel over a 2018 column by its executive editor Dan Wootton which branded him a 'wife beater'.

After weeks of evidence, which saw both Depp and Heard testify at the High Court, Mr Justice Nichol dismissed Depp's claim, finding NGN had proved the article's contents to be 'substantially true'.

But, in documents filed with the Court of Appeal, Mr Depp's lawyers claim Mr Justice Nicol's ruling was 'manifestly unsafe' and say they will ask the court to 'set aside the judgment and order a new trial'.

His barrister also argued the judge 'uncritically accepted at the outset that Ms Heard must have been correct in her allegations' and 'discounted evidence to the contrary'.

Mr Depp's barrister David Sherborne said the judge 'just accepted everything Ms Heard said, however implausible and however inconsistent with the documents.'