Rebuttal Closing — Defendant - Day 24

Day 24 was devoted entirely to closing arguments: Judge Azcarate charged the jury with defamation instructions, both sides presented closing and rebuttal arguments, and the jury retired to deliberate.

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rebuttal closing Rebuttal Closing — Defendant

1 6:51:32

MR. ROTTENBORN: Yes, Your Honor. Ladies and gentlemen, it's interesting that in both their opening and their rebuttal closing that you heard Mr. Depp's attorneys address none of Ms. Heard's witnesses. None of Ms. Heard's witnesses. They listed their own, who didn't see -- who are on his payroll, weren't there behind closed doors with them. But they didn't address any of the witnesses, for example, Josh Drew, Rocky Pennington, Liz Marz, who were all there on May 21st, Melanie Inglessis, who covered Ms. Heard's bruises. They say that no one showed up for her. No one showed up for her, but then they say that these people aren't friends anymore. If they're not friends anymore, then why would they be doing what they would suggest or lying for her? Why would they be corroborating everything that she says? It's this simple: If you believe that Depp was abusive to Amber one time ever, in any of the various forms of abuse, not only physical, verbal, emotional, psychological, sexual, any of the ways of abuse, then your job is very easy. And you cannot only deny Mr.

2 6:52:39

MR. ROTTENBORN: Depp's claim, but you can find for Amber on her counterclaim. And it's interesting that Ms. Vasquez just changed their theory, after six weeks, she said, oh, well, domestic abuse just means physical abuse. That's not what Mr. Depp said. That's not what Dr. Curry said. That's not what Dr. Hughes said. It's not what you know to be true. You know that the evidence that you've seen constitutes all sorts of abuse. And there's a reason that they're running as fast as they can from those sorts of abuse, because they know that he did it. Now, the suggestion that Amber's abuse allegations are a hoax is vicious and vile. Mr. Depp can say whatever he wants now, but he can't change the evidence that you've seen at the trial. And the evidence shows that Ms. Heard did not commit abuse hoaxes; not about sexual violence, not about May 21st, 2016, and certainly not about Mr. Depp or Mr. Waldman's catchall all-purpose statement that Ms. Heard's "abuse hoax" would suggest that every one of her allegations are false.

3 6:53:41

MR. ROTTENBORN: But that's coming to an end. The evidence shows she did not commit any of those "hoaxes." The evidence shows that she was abused exactly how, not only she, but her witnesses supporting her claims say that she was, and their witness, even, who claim that Mr. Depp abused her. Ms. Vasquez talked about actual malice. She said because Mr. Waldman was acting as Mr. Depp's agent, you have to look at Mr. Waldman. They're standing in the shoes of one another. And as Mr. Depp's agent, Mr. Depp's malice is Mr. Waldman's malice. Mr. Depp's malice is Mr. Waldman's malice. He acted with actual malice when he made these statements. Now, after years and years of Mr. Depp controlling the roles that Ms. Heard took, Ms. Heard had the biggest hit of her career three months before she was sued. She had withstood Mr.

4 6:54:38

MR. ROTTENBORN: Depp's attempt to have her fired from Aquaman, and his own jealousy as his career went down the drain before the op-ed, for reasons that had nothing to do with Ms. Heard. But once the lawsuit against Ms. Heard was filed, his campaign that he promised to destroy her entered a new phase. And then it reached a crescendo when Mr. Depp and Mr. Waldman decided to meet with the Daily Mail together and decided to plant 20 statements that were defamatory of Ms. Heard in the spring of 2020, leading up to the U.K. trial. You've heard Amber and her agent, Jessica Kovacevic, talk about the impact to Amber's career. She can't get hired because of the negative treatment she gets. Studios like her, co-stars like her, she tests well, but she can't get opportunities because of the negativity associated with Mr. Depp and Mr. Waldman.

5 6:56:00

MR. ROTTENBORN: And that promise he kept because he had told her again and again the only way out of this is death. And when she chose a different path out of it, he decided to make that promise. He decided to throw that spark. And when Mr. Waldman became involved, that spark became a forest fire. That forest fire has continued to this day. We ask, ladies and gentlemen, that you hold Mr. Depp accountable for his actions. Stand up for victims of domestic abuse everywhere who suffer in silence. Stand up for the freedom of speech, the freedom to speak about your life that the First Amendment protects. Give Amber Heard her voice back. Give Amber Heard her life back. Thank you so much for your service on this jury.

rebuttal closing Rebuttal Closing — Defendant J. Benjamin Rottenborn

Rottenborn's rebuttal closing argues any single instance of abuse supports Heard's counterclaim, attributes Waldman's malice to Depp as his agent, and closes with a direct jury appeal.

Rottenborn delivers Heard's rebuttal closing, challenging Depp's team for ignoring Heard's corroborating witnesses. He argues any single act of abuse—physical, verbal, emotional, or sexual—is sufficient to deny Depp's claim and support Heard's counterclaim. He contends Waldman's statements were made with actual malice attributable to Depp as his agent, and describes a coordinated 2020 Daily Mail campaign that damaged Heard's career before the UK trial. He closes urging the jury to give Heard her voice and life back.

Legal Significance

Rottenborn frames the counterclaim standard — Waldman's actual malice as Depp's agent equals Depp's malice — and argues any form of abuse suffices to support both denying Depp's claim and finding for Heard.

Key Moments

Rottenborn argues that any single instance of abuse in any form is sufficient for the jury to deny Depp's claim and find for Heard on her counterclaim.
Rottenborn addresses the counterclaim's actual malice standard, arguing Waldman's malice as Depp's agent is directly attributable to Depp, and rejects the 'abuse hoax' framing.
Rottenborn describes the 2020 Daily Mail campaign and its ongoing career damage to Heard, then closes with a direct appeal for the jury to hold Depp accountable and restore Heard's voice.

Key Quotes

"If you believe that Depp was abusive to Amber one time ever, in any of the various forms of abuse, not only physical, verbal, emotional, psychological, sexual, any of the ways of abuse, then your job is very easy."
— J. Benjamin Rottenborn Frames the low threshold Rottenborn is urging for the jury's verdict on both the claim and counterclaim.

"the suggestion that Amber's abuse allegations are a hoax is vicious and vile."
— J. Benjamin Rottenborn Direct characterization of Waldman's statements as the core of the defamation counterclaim.

"Mr. Depp's malice is Mr. Waldman's malice."
— J. Benjamin Rottenborn Condenses the agency theory of the counterclaim into a single repeated formulation.

"Give Amber Heard her voice back. Give Amber Heard her life back."
— J. Benjamin Rottenborn The final ask to the jury, closing the defendant's case.

Evidence Referenced

Testimony of Heard's corroborating witnesses: Josh Drew, Raquel Pennington, Elizabeth Marz, Melanie Inglessis
Daily Mail coordination — 20 planted statements in spring 2020 before the UK trial
Testimony of Jessica Kovacevic (Heard's agent) regarding career impact

Topics

any-form-of-abuse standard for counterclaim verdictHeard's witnesses not addressed in Depp's closingWaldman actual malice attributed to Depp via agency theory2020 Daily Mail campaign — 20 planted statements pre-UK trialAquaman role and Depp's alleged attempt to have Heard firedcareer damage to Heard as damages basis for counterclaimjury appeal — accountability and First Amendment framing

emotional defamationdomestic-violencereputationuk-trialwitness-credibility

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