A Manhattan judge ruled Friday that Johnny Depp must pay the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) $38,000 for evidence used in his victory in a defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife Amber Heard.
The ACLU, a nonprofit organization, originally asked for $86,000 in attorneys’ fees to enforce the subpoena, but Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron ruled they were getting less than half after Depp’s lawyers filed a motion.
Stephanie Teplin, the ACLU’s attorney, argued that the $86,000 was for “significant costs incurred in response to burdensome subpoenas served by Mr. Depp in an underlying lawsuit to which neither the ACLU nor any of its employees are parties.” according to Law & Crime.
Depp requested thousands of documents over a six-year period as he prepared for the defamation trial, according to Teplin.
Jessica Myers, Depp’s attorney, called the ACLU’s initial request “excessive and unreasonable.”
The ACLU stands with Amber Heard
“They [ACLU] were responsible for producing and publishing the publication that a Virginia jury has just found defamatory of Mr. Depp,” Myers said.
According to Newsweek, an ACLU spokesperson said the organization was “pleased that the Court recognized that the ACLU complied with Mr. Depp’s demands and did so at great expense.”
During the trial, evidence showed that the ACLU helped Heard prepare and publish the article in The Washington Post.
The nonprofit stood by Heard throughout the case, even though it didn’t receive the donations she had promised.
Heard was ordered to pay Depp $8.35 million in damages, although she does not have the money and plans to appeal.
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