The trial that has captured the attention of millions around the world everyday for the last seven weeks came to a close on Friday, leaving people avidly anticipating the outcome of what has been a rollercoaster of a journey to justice.
As a short summary, Pirates of the Caribbean actor Johnny Depp is suing his ex-wife and actress Amber Heard in a £40 million defamation lawsuit.
In 2018 Miss Heard branded herself as a ‘survivor of domestic abuse’, whilst Mr Depp’s name and reputation became one of disgust and he consequently lost all of his upcoming work.
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During this libel trial, Depp has claimed that it is in fact him that is the survivor of domestic abuse, and the court has heard multiple recordings of Miss Heard admitting to physically assaulting Mr Depp.
The jury that has been home to the Fairfax County Courthouse in Virginia for nearly two months must now sift through mountains of evidence including infamous voice recordings, images, text messages, witness testimonies and medical reports that have been scrutinised so scrupulously by lawyers.
So, do we know when the verdict will be announced?
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Generally speaking, it can take anywhere between hours and weeks for a jury to compile all the evidence from a case and come to a conclusion, and all members of the jury have to agree on their verdict.
Currently we do not know exactly when the jurors will come to a decision for this libel trial, and it may be some time before all seven of the members agree on the outcome.
What Will Happen If Johnny Depp Wins?
If Mr Depp wins the libel trial, Miss Heard will be ordered to pay the £40 million in compensation, however the jury can recommend a change in the amount depending on how accurate they perceive it to be.
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Due to the nature of the trial being a civil case rather than a criminal case, Miss Heard would not go to prison if the jury decided that Mr Depp was indeed defamed in 2018, like his lawyers have been trying to prove for the last seven weeks.
If Miss Heard wins the libel trial, she will not have to pay Mr Depp the £40 million compensation and instead has counter sued him for £80 million, whilst claiming that his legal team defamed her as a “sexual violence hoax”.
All in all we cannot predict when the verdict of the trial will be announced, however what we do know is that when it is, Twitter is going to be a noisy place.
Featured Image Credit: AlamyTopics: Amber Heard, Johnny Depp