Amber Heard Faces $15M Court Battle Over Legal Bill in Depp Defamation Trial

and he balled up his fists. leaned back and head-butted me Square in. the nose just. right as I stood in front of him Amber. Heard has some new legal trouble this. time about who's going to pay her legal. bills Civil Trial Attorney Richard. schoenstein will explain welcome to. sidebar presented by long crime I'm. Jesse Weber. I thought I figured out of that room and. I'd leave the best thing ever happened.

to me. and I wish I could sit here and say I. stood up and I walked out of that house. and I drew a line and I stood up for. myself. the legal trouble surrounding Amber. Heard are continuing as you recall heard. was involved in a widely publicized and. debated televised defamation trial with. her ex-husband Johnny Depp something. that we covered here on sidebar and the. long crime Network the jury ended up. ruling against her saying that she. defamed Depp in a Washington Post op-ed.

piece basically calling him a domestic. abuser and they awarded Depp 10.35. million dollars in Damages but that was. offset by the two million dollars. awarded to herd because the jury also. found that the pirate Star had defamed. his ex-wife as well so as that gets all. sorted out there's another problem and. that problem is who is going to pay for. Amber heard's legal expenses which. reportedly are now in the multi-millions. apparently it was already passed eight.

million dollars before the trial and now. maybe near 15 million dollars in legal. expenses and you see Amber Heard had a. homeowner's policy with Travelers. Commercial Insurance company and excuse. me a general liability policy with New. York marine and these both cover. defamation claims but Travelers sued New. York Marine to pay half the cost then. both insurance companies are trying to. get out of paying Amber Heard has had to. retain a new lawyer to sort this out so.

we figured why don't we try to sort this. out and to help sort it out I'm joined. by civil litigator and trial Attorney. Richard schoenstein who's been my. partner in crime on the Johnny Depp. Amber Heard trial and the aftermath of. such so rich good to see you good to see. you Jesse is it typical to have. insurance companies pay for legal. inspect legal expenses like this uh I. wouldn't say necessarily typical but it. happens all the time and if you ever get. sued for anything you ought to check.

whatever insurance policies you have in. place because you do find coverage. sometimes I mean Amber Heard apparently. founded in a homeowner's policy and a. general liability ability policy that's. not uncommon that what you would regard. as an ordinary insurance policy mostly. about protecting your home would. actually cover in some instances. litigation expenses but how is that. related how does that work well it's.

just a general liability coverage. insurance policies or contracts they are. as narrow or as broad as they are. written so every policy is different. every insurer is different you can't. really give any general rules other than. read the policy very carefully but a. policy may offer coverage for you know a. homeowner's policy will ensure you for. accidents that happen to third parties. while on your premises so if somebody at. your house trips and falls and sues you.

the homeowner's policy might cover your. expense in that litigation and might. cover the damage to the person who fell. at your home but but I guess the problem. for Amber Heard is that these insurance. companies are trying to get out of it. because the jury found her liable for. defamation this was an intentional. wrongdoing and they're saying right we. don't have to pay out for that we don't. have to pay your legal expenses that's. exactly right and again this is another. this is another uh assumption without.

seeing the policy but insurance policies. don't usually cover somebody for. intentional misconduct or intentional. torts so they might cover you for. negligence if someone trips and falls at. your home as we said but they don't. necessarily cover you for intentionally. hurting somebody you know punching them. in the face on purpose or here defaming. them does that mean in your experience. you don't think that these insurance. companies are going to have to pay the. legal cost that it's now going to fall. on the shoulders of Amber Heard.

uh that would be my guess as to how this. is going and let's take it in two steps. first of all they certainly won't have. to pay the verdict the insurance. policies aren't going to cover a verdict. of something brought by a third party. where it's an intentional tort typically. speaking when insurance companies pay. out legal fees they do it under a. reservation of Rights because they're. paying for your defense even though it. might be a result of that case that. somebody founds that you acted.

purposefully wrongfully and and often. the insurance company will require you. to sign an undertaking that says you. have to pay back the legal fees if the. court ultimately rules that you. committed fraud or some other purposeful. misconduct this arises all the time by. the way with directors and officers or. dno insurance as we talk about and. directors and officers are sued under. company policies so I don't know if. Amber Heard had to sign an undertaking.

but I do understand these insurance. companies now saying we don't have to. pay these legal fees so in other words. there's a possibility she took the risk. she said okay maybe I won't have to pay. it myself but if I lose I might be on. the hook for what happens if she can't. pay for it can't pay for the legal fees. well that's I mean that is that is a. terrible Quagmire for everybody involved. right I mean these law firms put a lot. of time and effort into these cases and. have these bills and by the way the size. of these bills don't surprise me given.

the scope of these litigations the. number of witnesses the amount of. pre-trial activities the amount of trial. activities 15 million it really doesn't. I mean I know it seems high but these. were were extensive and there is a. problem here I understand you know Amber. Heard went through several different law. firms and it's never cheaper to involve. a series of lawyers you have starts and. stops and people have to get up to speed. and it can make it very experience very.

expensive so I understand it seems a. little bit high but I'm not totally. shocked about that yeah let's talk real. quick about the lawyers so my. understanding is travelers insurance. which by the way had a representative in. court and when I was in court I saw her. all the time she was sitting right. behind the defense. um but Travelers uh which my. understanding is they maybe paid for. most of the legal defense they wanted to. bring in. um they wanted to bring in their own. lawyers and then the other insurance. company wanted to bring in their lawyers.

and these lawyers were frozen out how. does that work because my understanding. again is Amber Heard kind of went. through a series of of lawyers before. she ultimately settled on Elaine. bretonhoft in these insurance cases a a. problem that often arises is who gets to. pick the lawyers and a lot of insurance. policies will say that the insurance. company gets to pick the lawyers but in. many states if the insurance company. issues a reservation of Rights meaning. it says we're not sure if we're going to.

cover this we're going to wait and see. how it plays out when there's a. reservation of Rights in place the. insurance company can lose its ability. to pick the lawyer and then the. defendant the insured party is allowed. to pick the lawyer some policies allow. that right from the beginning so I. gather there was a dispute in this case. over who got the pick the lawyer and. that is part of what they're fighting. about now. Rich I'll give you a final quick word on. this how much trouble is Amber Heard in. with with respect to this well Amber.

Heard could be in trouble because she is. ultimately on the hook for these damages. Awards and for the legal fees I don't. know if she's going to declare personal. bankruptcy I don't know if that helps. because bankruptcy doesn't typically. discharge intentional misconduct you. know a verdict like this for intentional. misconduct it might discharge part of. the legal fees so everybody's in some. financial trouble here Amber Heard the. insurance company the second insurance.

company and Johnny Depp who's looking. presumably to collect these amounts it. might behoove everybody to get together. in a room and work it out as I've been. saying for a long time maybe they'll. listen to you Richard schoenstein thanks. so much. and thanks everybody for joining us here. on sidebar please subscribe on Apple. podcast Spotify YouTube wherever you get. your podcast I'm Jesse Weber we'll speak. to you next time. [Music].