According to reports, actor Johnny Depp and attorney Joelle Rich, who partnered with him on his libel case against The Sun in 2018, have started dating. The libel case against the British tabloid had been dropped by Mr. Depp.
Johnny Depp Is Reportedly Dating His Trial Lawyer Joelle Rich
Johnny Depp has confidently wormed his way back into the public eye since winning his defamation trial against Amber Heard, his ex-wife who accused him of abuse. Reports that he is dating Joelle Rich, a London-based lawyer who represented him in a related libel case in the U.K., are the most recent development in his comeback tour.
Even though the U.S. trial used many of the same pieces of evidence, Depp’s U.K. lawsuit against a British newspaper group after one of its publications referred to him as a “wife beater” came to a different conclusion. In July 2020, a judge dismissed the case after finding that Depp had made Heard “fear for her life.”
Depp apparently found time to meet with one of his attorneys in between court appearances. Although “Page Six” claims she has separated from her husband and is in the process of getting a divorce, it is unclear when he and Rich began dating. When they first started dating, according to one source, they had “discreet” liaisons at hotels. Rich also seems to have attended Depp’s American trial, though not in a formal capacity. Their relationship is described as “serious” by Us.
You might not have anticipated Depp to be romantically involved with the lawyer Rich. During his U.S. trial, there were numerous rumors that he was dating Camille Vasquez, who served as his principal American attorney. Vasquez dismissed the rumors as “sexist” and denied that she was dating Depp, calling it a “unethical charge” but adding that it “comes with the territory” of being a female lawyer.
She and Rich appeared to get along well enough because they were seen hugging after the Virginia jury’s verdict was announced. It appears that Depp has a strong support system behind him as he begins his numerous upcoming projects.
How did Johnny Depp and Joelle Rich start dating?
On September 22, 2022, Page Six announced that Depp and Rich were dating following his defamation trial with his ex-wife, Amber Heard. Rich, a lawyer who defended Depp in his defamation lawsuit against The Sun in 2020, was married when she first met Depp, but she has since separated from him and is currently going through a divorce, according to Page Six. Rich has two kids with her husband.
Additionally, a source at the time informed Us Weekly that Depp and Rich’s romance is the “real deal.” The insider said, “Their chemistry is off the charts. They have a serious disagreement. They are the genuine article. Rich wasn’t one of the attorneys who defended Depp in his 2022 trial against Heard, but, in the words of the source for Us Weekly, she was present in the courtroom to “support” the actor.
She was not required to be there for work purposes. The insider added that Depp and Rich “discreetly” met up in hotels in the early stages of their relationship because “it was personal.” Depp and Rich’s relationship is not “serious,” despite the assertion made by Us Weekly’s source, an insider told People at the time. The source claimed that although they are dating, it is not serious.
After Depp’s other attorney, Camille Vasquez, who represented him in his trial with Heard, addressed rumors that they were dating in an interview with People, Depp and Rich began dating. She remarked at the time, “I guess it comes with the territory of being a woman just doing her job. It’s disappointing that some media outlets took the story and ran with it, claiming that my interactions with Johnny—a friend I’ve known and worked for four and a half years—were in any way improper or impolite.
It is disappointing to learn that. She went on, “I genuinely care about my clients, and it’s clear that our relationship has grown. However, I mean the whole team—including Johnny, of course—when I say “we.” I’m also Colombian and Cuban. I’m touchy. What exactly should I say, then? I embrace everyone. And I’m not embarrassed by it.
In addition, Vasquez told People that “when I love, I really love,” and that “my work is my love.” She continued, “It broke my heart to see this man, who was fighting for his life, have to sit there day in and day out and listen to the most heinous allegations being made against him. And if I could offer him any solace at all, whether it be by holding his hand or just letting him know that we were there for him and that we would stand up for him because he deserved it, of course, I would do that.
Vasquez also branded the “sexist” and “unethical” romance rumors surrounding her and Depp. In addition, an unethical accusation is being made. She declared, “It’s sexist. Although unfortunate and disappointing, it also sort of goes with the territory. I wouldn’t say that I was very surprised. When the rumors of a romance between Depp and Vasquez first surfaced, a source also stated to People that they were “entirely, 100 percent, unequivocally untrue.”
Edward Owen, a manager at WeWork, is dating Vasquez. She stated that she was “very happy in my relationship” and emphasized that it was “unethical for us to date our clients” in an interview with People at the time.
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