After a week-long trial, a jury in June awarded $ 15 million in damages to Depp and only $ 2 million in Heard in their respective defamation lawsuits. Heard’s lawyers requested a new trial, alleging that the information on the jury’s list sent to the lawyers before the trial did not appear to match the demographic data of one of the jurors and therefore compromised the rights. of Heard due process.
Judge Penney Azcarate said in the court order filed Wednesday that Heard’s rights to due process were not affected because no fraud or crime occurred in the jury selection process.
“The jury was examined, sat for the entire jury, deliberated and reached a verdict. The only evidence before this Court is that this jury and all jurors followed their oaths, the instructions of the Court and the orders. This Court is bound by the competent decision of the jury, “Judge Azcarate wrote.
If Heard’s legal team had a problem with the jury selection process, it should have addressed it during the trial for weeks, Azcarate added.
“A party cannot wait until they receive an adverse ruling to oppose, for the first time, an issue known since the start of the trial,” the order states.
Depp’s lawyers filed a response note against Heard’s post-trial motions last week before the judge’s decision, calling the legal arguments frivolous.
“While Ms. Heard throws an exceptional amount of mud at the wall in the hope that something will stick, the jury’s verdict on damages was perfectly reasonable and supported by evidence and testimony in this case,” he said. declare Depp’s note.
When CNN contacted him, Depp and Heard’s representatives declined to comment further on the judge’s order.
Heard’s appeal against the sentence is still pending.