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The defamation case between Johnny Depp and his ex-wife Amber Heard was one of the most watched celebrity legal battles ever since the O.J. Simpson trial of the 1990s or the murder case levied against Robert Blake in the early 2000s. While Blake and Simpson were tried for horrible crimes, permanently damaging their images, Depp was able to convince a jury that Heard defamed his reputation intentionally and redeemed himself in the eyes of millions of his fans.

Related: Johnny Depp V.S. Amber Heard Put Both Actors In A Negative Light, Here's The Worst Things We Learned About Them

Heard, on the other hand, became the subject of intense ridicule and one of the most hated people on the internet. She even earned herself some unflattering nicknames like, "Amber T*rd" because she allegedly defecated in Johnny Depp's bed as an act of revenge, according to People. But Heard is not the only one who came away from the trial with a damaged image.

Heard's lawyers might have done irreparable damage to their reputations for losing that trial. Many legal critics who watched the trial think their lines of questioning were terrible, that they mismanaged both Amber Heard and Johnny Depp's cross-examinations, and overall they did not come out of the trial looking like good lawyers.

Who Were Amber Heard's Lawyers?

Depp's team, helmed by Ben Chu, came from Brown Rudnick, a law firm ranked among the top 150 in the United States according to Bloomberg Law. Heard's legal team was led by three primary attorneys from two different firms.

It is very common, especially for celebrities and the rich, to hire multiple lawyers for a single case, O.J. Simpson, for example, was represented by four lawyers and several associates.

Elaine Bredehoft pictured with Amber Heard at trial
 via Twitter/ Law and Crime Network

The lawyers representing Amber Heard were Elaine Bredehoft and Adam Nadelhaft from Charlson Bredehoft Cohen Brown & Nadelhaft, and the unfortunately named Ben Rottenborn from Woods Rogers Attorneys At Law.

The case went on for over six weeks, ending with the seven-person jury ruling unanimously in favor of Johnny Depp. Defamation cases are some of the hardest cases to win because they require intense amounts of fact-finding, additional costs for hiring experts such as psychologists, and a variety of other reasons.

Related: 10 Bizzare Moments From The Johnny Depp Defamation Trial

Depp's team, however, convinced all seven jurors that Heard caused unwarranted damage to the actor's reputation. How did Amber Heard's team lose so badly?

What Do People Think Amber Heard's Lawyers Did Wrong?

Many legal vloggers and streamers watched the trial and offered extensive commentary. Criminal Lawyer Reacts, a Youtube and Tik Tok channel run by defense attorney Bruce Rivers, pointed out several flaws in the strategy Heard's team was using.

Elaine Bredehoft
Via: Youtube / Law and Crime Network

For example, Rivers points out that a good lawyer only asks questions they know the answer to. In several clips of Bredehoft and Rottenborn cross-examining witnesses, both lawyers ask questions blindly only to get humiliated by the answers.

When Adam Nadelhaft asked one of Johnny Depp's bodyguards, "Mr. Depp had his penis out, didn't he?" The witness replied, "No," with a confused tone. One of Depp's lawyers, Sam Moniz, was visibly surprised by the question before he made a formal objection.

One witness, a former TMZ employee named Morgan Tremaine, embarrassed Bredehoft with a clap back that went viral. When Bredehoft asked him, "So this gets you your 15 minutes of fame?"Bredehoft inquired. "I have nothing to gain from this... I could say the same thing about you and you representing Amber Heard." To which there were audible gasps in the gallery.

Morgan Tremaine testifies during Johnny Depps trial against Amber Heard
Via: TheThings

Bredehoft also embarrassed herself when she asked another witness, Morgan Knight, the manager of the Hicksville Trailer Park, "You're a fan of Johnny Depp's, aren't you?" he bluntly replied, "No."

Also, several of Bredehoft and Rottenborn's questions were ruled by the judge to be hearsay. The phrases "objection, hearsay," or "objection relevance," were some of the most frequently uttered words in this case.

But the ultimate blunder might have been the times that Elaine Bredehoft argued with the judge. You don't have to be a lawyer to know that if there is anyone in a courtroom whose good side you want to be on, it's them. It also does not endear you to the jury.

After all of this, the court ruled that Amber Heard owes Johnny Depp $10 million.

What Happened To Eliane Bredehoft After Losing The Johnny Depp Trial?

Allegedly, according to Newsweek, Bredehoft stormed into the court's bathroom and sobbed after the verdict against Heard was read.

Then, barely a whole day after the case concluded, Bredehoft began to tour around talk shows, defending her handling of the case. Tremaine, the TMZ employee she accused of wanting fifteen minutes of fame, posted on his social media accounts alleging that Bredehoft was a hypocrite.

Related: Amber Heard's Original Trial Lawyers Are Purposefully Living Life Out Of The Spotlight, Here's Where They Are Now

Bredehoft also promised that she would be filing an appeal, which they did and lost. Amber Heard parted ways with Bredehoft and put together a new team for another appeal. Whether or not they parted ways on positive or negative terms is unknown. Ben Rottenborn stayed in Heard's employment. Despite losing the case, Bredehoft's law firm still has a five-star rating on Lawyers.com.

Johnny-Depp’s-Sister-Testifies-That-Amber-Heard-Called-Him-“An-Old-Fat-Man-With-No-Style”-1
Via: TheThings

Among Heard's new lawyers were famous legal names like David Axelrod and Jay Ward Brown.

Heard dropped the appeal in December 2022 and finally settled her case with Depp. Although the court granted Depp $10 million in damages, the jury did rule that there was one small instance where Depp's employees slandered Heard and awarded her $2 million. This reduced the final amount she owed to $8 million.

Where Does The Johnny Depp And Amber Heard Case Stand Now?

As far as legality is concerned, the case is over and done with. Heard is settling the debt with Depp, and with no more appeals left to file the matter is settled as far as the court is concerned.

Johnny Depp waves to fans
Via Instar

Otherwise, the case will likely haunt both Johnny Depp and Amber Heard for the rest of their lives. The public learned all the unpleasant details about their relationship. Amber Heard soon became one of the most hated women on the internet and is allegedly now blacklisted by Hollywood. Plus even though Depp convinced the jury that he was the real victim of abuse, many still believe he harmed Amber Heard. Celebrities such as Julia Fox and Kathy Griffin have come out in support of Heard.

Still, Depp thanked the jury for their verdict in a personal statement, saying that those seven people, "gave me my life back."

Memes mocking Amber Heard and her legal team continue to make viral rounds on the internet.