Johnny Depp's Lawyer Explains Why Actor Filed To Appeal Amber Heard's $2 Million Verdict

Johnny Depp's lawyer Camille Vasquez has revealed why the actor filed an appeal in response to Amber Heard's own appeal, following his June 1 defamation-trial win against her.

After Heard, 36, filed a notice of appeal last week, her 59-year-old ex-husband filed his own notice of appeal the following day, seeking to overturn the $2 million verdict in the "Aquaman" actress' countersuit.

In an interview that aired Thursday, Vasquez told "CBS Mornings" co-host Gayle King that it was "fair" to say that Depp's team wouldn't be seeking to appeal if his ex-wife hadn't first filed to challenge the jury verdict ordering her to pay Depp $10 million in damages.

The lawyer explained that Heard's appeal "was expected" as the actress "has indicated since the day she lost the trial that she was going to appeal."

"Mr. Depp ended up filing his own appeal, so that the court could have the full record," Vasquez said of why her client decided to appeal the verdict. "And [Heard] insists on continuing to litigate this matter, and we have to protect our client's interest."

She continued, "We are just hopeful that the court will uphold the verdict, which we think was the right verdict, and allow both parties to move on."

The lawyer said that the trial had never been about the money for the "Pirates of the Caribbean" actor but that his legal team felt they had to respond to Heard's appeal with Depp's own appeal in order to "protect his interests."

While the jury in Fairfax County, Virginia, found that Heard defamed Depp in her 2018 Washington Post op-ed, they sided with Heard on one of her three counterclaims, finding that the actor defamed her via comments made by his attorney Adam Waldman in 2020.

Heard called for a mistrial earlier this month, but the request was dismissed by Judge Penney Azcarate, who presided over the exes' defamation trial.

Heard's lawyers filed a notice of appeal in the Circuit Court of Fairfax County on July 21.

In a statement about moving forward with the appeal — which will require Heard to post a bond of the full damages amount she owes — a spokesperson for Heard said in a statement obtained by Variety that they "believe the court made errors that prevented a just and fair verdict consistent with the First Amendment."

"We are therefore appealing the verdict," they added. "While we realize today's filing will ignite the Twitter bonfires, there are steps we need to take to ensure both fairness and justice."

The following day, Depp's legal team also filed a notice of appeal to her counterclaims.

An unnamed source close to Depp told People that the actor believes that both parties should "move on with their lives and heal" following the trial.

The source added, "But if Ms. Heard is determined to pursue further litigation by appealing the verdict, Mr. Depp is filing a concurrent appeal to ensure that the full record and all relevant legal issues are considered by the Court of Appeal."

Depp has been focused on various projects since the trial concluded. On Thursday, he made more than $3.6 million in just hours after all 780 pieces of his debut art collection sold out.