After losing a defamation trial against her former husband Johnny Depp over charges of domestic abuse, actress Amber Heard is reportedly preparing an appeal.
In a Virginia court, jurors found in Depp's favour on three counts of slander, paying him $15 million (£12 million), which was later lowered by the judge to $10.35 million.
According to the New York Times, Heard's spokesperson, Alafair Hall, said the Aquaman actor wanted to appeal the ruling.
Heard had sought $100 million in a countersuit against Depp, claiming that his publicity agent had defamed her by calling her allegations "an abuse fabrication" meant to capitalise on the #MeToo movement. Only one count was successful, and she was given $2 million.
Depp's lawyers persuaded the jury that he did not assault Heard and that her allegations of domestic abuse in a Washington Post piece defamed Depp and were published "with malice" or knowing the claim was false.
Heard voiced her dismay in a subsequent statement that made no mention of the reported appeal. "I'm even more disappointed with what this decision represents for other women," she said.
"It's a setback," Heard remarked. It turns the clock back to a time when a woman who spoke up and spoke out could be publically humiliated and shamed. It undermines the notion that women's violence should be taken seriously."
The verdict came after a seven-week trial in which hundreds of witnesses and experts weighed in on whether Depp was violent to Heard during their 15-month marriage.
The Heard-Depp case, according to Lisa Bloom, a high-profile US lawyer who represented women whose sexual harassment accusations led to the removal of Fox News presenter Bill O'Reilly, will be determined on appeal.
"I want to highlight that this is not the end since most defamation cases are really determined on appeal," she told BBC Two's Newsnight.
"I have handled a number of defamation cases, including representing Janice Dickinson against Bill Cosby, [in which] we had to argue two appeals, both of which were successful," she continued. This is, in my opinion, an inconsistency in the decision. How is it that Amber Heard's charges were defamed when Johnny Depp's lawyer indicated they were a fraud, but Johnny Depp was also defamed when she declared she was a representative of domestic violence? She was also found guilty of defamation for the article's headline, which she did not compose... I believe this will be upheld on appeal. I believe we will have a more solid explanation and resolution in this matter after a year or two."
