Amber Heard has asked a Virginia judge to force ex-husband Johnny Depp to finally sit down for an examination with her attorneys.
The actor sued his ex-wife for $50 million (£39 million) after she referred to herself as "a public figure representing domestic abuse" in a Washington Post article in 2018. He claimed he had been defamed in the piece, even though Heard didn't name him, stating it suggested the actress was a domestic abuse victim and he "perpetrated domestic violence against her".
Aquaman actress Heard has already launched a $100 million (£78 million) counterclaim against Depp this summer, and she's now demanding he faces up to her lawyers while alleging he's been dodging the deposition while he shoots Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them 3.
“Defendant is forced to bring this motion after extensive efforts to obtain the deposition of Plaintiff, even after providing a two-month Notice of Deposition, asking for locations and dates for Mr. Depp prior to his filming, seeking discovery to ascertain Mr. Depp’s exact filming schedule, and finally being told that the Plaintiff in this action, suing Defendant for $50 million, will not make himself available for deposition until the filming of Fantastic Beasts is complete, sometime late February 2021, or possibly later,” lawyers for the star state, reported Deadline.
Heard is once again trying to get the case dismissed, or seeking an assurance that Depp shows up “for three successive days in counsel for Defendant’s offices in Virginia on or before October 30, 2020 on dates and times agreeable to counsel for Defendant”.
A hearing has been set for 9 October before Fairfax County, Virginia, Circuit Court Chief Judge Bruce White on the matter, with another hearing on sanctions against Depp’s main lawyer Adam Waldman scheduled for 23 October.
The couple split in 2016 after Heard accused Depp of being abusive throughout their 15-month marriage. Depp has vehemently denied the claims.
