Although the couple both live in California, the defamation case brought by Depp against his former wife is in Virginia, where the trial will play out at Fairfax County’s district courthouse.

Online editions of The Washington Post are published through servers located in Fairfax County, which is thought to be one of the reasons behind Depp’s lawyers deciding on the location.

Another is because of Virginia’s anti-Slapp law, which is not as broad as the one in California. The provision allows a person to claim protection from a lawsuit when speaking about issues of public concern.

Lawyers for Heard, who have filed a counter defamation claim, are expected to use the anti-Slapp law during the trial. It comes four years after her Washington Post article titled: I spoke up against sexual violence – and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press

Appearing as a witness during Depp’s trial against British newspaper The Sun in 2020, Heard said she wanted to be “left alone” and wanted her former husband to end lawsuits over domestic abuse claims to “save him the embarrassment.”

“I didn’t want to do this, I did not want to expose this totality of what really happened to me,” Heard told London’s Royal Courts of Justice. “I didn’t want to talk about everything that happened in our marriage and happened in our relationship.”

While Depp denies the claims, Heard told the court of 14 allegations of “violence” by Depp between 2013 and 2016, in locations such as a rented house in Australia, his private island in the Bahamas and a private jet, as The Associated Press reported two years ago.

The judge ruled against Depp, who accused the publisher of The Sun of defaming him with a headline including the words “wife beater”. His lawyers afterwards called the judge’s decision “perverse”.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard have arrived at the courthouse for jury selection in the $50m defamation trial.

James Franco and Elon Musk are among the high-profile names who will provide a testimony during the case between Depp and Heard.

Paul Bethany, of WandaVision, as well as representatives of the Walt Disney company and Warner Bros are also due to appear in the Fairfax County court, reported Deadline.

The long-delayed trial is due to begin later today with the selection of a jury.

The high-profile legal disagreement between Depp and Heard was depicted in a TV documentary series last year on Discovery Plus, which sought to reveal the reasons behind the pair’s two “polarised perspectives”.

The programme – Johnny v Amber – was also billed as the story “of the breakdown” of Depp and Heard’s relationship, including “how it tipped into the celebrity court case of the decade”.

Although the couple both live in California, the defamation case brought by Depp against his former wife is in Virginia, where the trial will play out at Fairfax County’s district courthouse.

Online editions of The Washington Post are published through servers located in Fairfax County, which is thought to be one of the reasons behind Depp’s lawyers deciding on the location.

Another is because of Virginia’s anti-Slapp law, which is not as broad as the one in California. The provision allows a person to claim protection from a lawsuit when speaking about issues of public concern.

Lawyers for Heard, who have filed a counter defamation claim, are expected to use the anti-Slapp law during the trial. It comes four years after her Washington Post article titled:  I spoke up against sexual violence – and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.

Additional reporting by The Associated Press

The court building in Fairfax, Virginia, will be busy over the coming weeks, as it is where the trial involving Depp and Heard will take place.

A live stream will be broadcast from the court when the trial begins, although it is unclear if there will be a stream on Monday, when jury selection is taking place.

Heard will be able to argue during the trial that she is immune from liability because her Washington Post article in 2018 about domestic violence was an important issue in the public interest.

Lawyers for Depp had argued for the court to refuse to allow Heard to use the law, known as an anti-Slapp (strategic lawsuit against public participation) provision, because it was a civil case.

Both will testify during the trial, which will see the Fairfax County district court assess Heard’s counter defamation claim against Depp.

Writing from outside the court room in Fairfax, The Independent’s Clémence Michallon says:

“Spectators, supporters, and potential jurors have begun to gather at the Fairfax County Courthouse in Virginia.

Today is the opening of Johnny Depp’s $50m defamation trial against his ex-wife Amber Heard. He alleges she defamed him in an op-ed she wrote for The Washington Post in 2018. Heard has countersued for $100m and asked to be granted immunity against his claims.

Potential jurors are lining up inside the courthouse, as are spectators looking to gain access to the courtroom.
Proceedings are expected to begin at 10am with jury selection. Jury selection, in turn, is expected to wrap up by the end of the day.

Outside, television cameras are being set up. Supporters also showed up early. During Johnny Depp’s trial against The Sun in the UK, he was known to sometimes stop to greet fans, occasionally collecting flowers from them and stopping for photographs.”