Johnny Depp and his team have responded to Amber Heard's request for a mistrial regarding their defamation case.
Last week, the legal team representing 36-year-old Heard filed new documents filed with the Circuit Court of Fairfax County calling for a mistrial to be ruled and "a new trial ordered" between the former couple.
Heard's request came after her attorney's claimed that "newly discovered facts and information" show that "Juror No. 15 was not the individual summoned for jury duty on April 11, 2022."
According to Heard's lawyers, the person who was supposed to be Juror No. 15 was 77 years old at the time, and shares the same last name and address as someone who was 52. But the actress' legal team claims that it was actually the younger person who turned up to court to serve as the juror in the trial - not the 77-year-old.
As reported by PEOPLE, Heard's lawyers state in the filing: "It is deeply troubling for an individual not summoned for jury duty nonetheless to appear for jury duty and serve on a jury, especially in a such as this" - highlighting the "high-profile" status of the Depp v. Heard trial, "where the fact and date of the jury trial were highly publicized prior to and after the issuance of the juror summonses."
Due to the allegations, Heard's team have demanded that Heard be provided the proper "due process" she deserves.
Now, in court documents obtained by E! News, Depp's legal team has responded.
In papers filed on July 11, Depp's attorneys allege that both Amber Heard and her attorneys were given access to the pre-panel jury list in early April.
Depp's lawyers argue that Heard and her team "had more than enough time before the trial started, and during the six week trial, when at least two alternates were available, to investigate and discover the alleged 'new' facts."
The new filing also adds that Heard's request for a mistrial was filed seven days past the determined deadline.
Responding to the claims of an incorrect juror, Depp's team argues that the individual who sat on the jury was still "qualified to serve as a juror in Fairfax County and was vetted by the Court and the parties' counsel just as all the other jurors were".
"Though understandably displeased with the outcome of trial, Ms. Heard has identified no legitimate basis to set aside in any respect the jury's decision," the filing added. "Mr. Depp respectfully submits that the Court should deny Ms. Heard's Post-Trial Motions, which verge into the frivolous."
The defamation case between the two was filed by Depp following his ex-wife's statements in her 2018 op-ed published by The Washington Post.
In the piece, Heard referred to herself as "a public figure representing domestic abuse." Depp's lawyers said that the article defamed him and ruined his career and reputation - even though he was never mentioned by name.
After six weeks, the long-running defamation trial concluded on June 1, with the Virginia jury unanimously siding with Depp and awarding him a total of $10.35 million in damages. Heard was awarded $2 million in her counterclaim.
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