Johnny Depp Has Settled The Lawsuit Against His Former Lawyers

November 1, 2019 / Posted by:

Johnny Depp has one less lawsuit to deal with at the moment. Which is good news for Johnny Depp, since I’d estimate that his defamation lawsuit against Amber Heard takes up at least 23 hours of his day. And while his current team of lawyers continue to present messier allegations for that lawsuit, they don’t have to worry about fighting Johnny’s old team of lawyers, because Bloomberg reports that’s been settled and it’s over.

About two years ago, Johnny sued his former lawyers, because he believed they had conspired against him with his former management company, The Management Group. According to Johnny, Jacob A. Bloom and the entertainment law firm Bloom Hergott Diemer Rosenthal LaViolette Feldman Schenkman & Goodman, LLP (who he hired back in 1999) had ripped him off with a series of shady loans they took out using Johnny’s money. He also accused BHDRLFS&G of collecting over $30 million in voidable contingent fees without a written contract. Johnny had also accused TMG of taking out loans using his money, as well as just general money management sloppiness. Johnny settled with TMG last year, allegedly in Johnny’s favor.

Bloomberg says Johnny’s current lawyer Adam Waldman spoke to them about the settlement, and Adam claims that BHDRLFS&G paid Johnny a “massive 8-figure settlement” to avoid “the shame of evidence” in a public trial. The trial was scheduled to happen next month in Los Angeles.

Bryan Freedman, a lawyer for BHDRLFS&G, confirmed a settlement was reached, but added that they had settled for a “fraction” of what Johnny wanted. Johnny was originally seeking $50 million in his lawsuit. Bryan also added a little rebuttal to Adam’s claim that they wanted to avoid the embarrassment of a trial:

“While the firm was confident it would prevail at trial, we are nonetheless pleased with this resolution as it expedites the firm’s winding down process and allows it to get off the endless Johnny Depp litigation train.”

Of course, Johnny’s lawyer shot back with his own petty response to the alleged settlement amount.

“The law firm formerly known as Bloom Hergott, sued by Johnny Depp for a multi-decade fraud and malfeasance spree, and after losing a landmark 6147 ruling, avoided the shame of evidence in a public trial by paying Mr Depp an eight-figure settlement. They are correct that eight figures is a fraction of nine figures.”

Adam might want to check some of that cockiness. Deadline says that the details of the settlement are confidential, but they’ve heard Johnny settled for around $10 million. That’s barely Johnny’s silver tooth cap budget for one year. Make it last, Johnny.

What might have led us to this point was a moment last year when the judge assigned to the lawsuit granted a motion by Johnny’s team to “declare invalid the longtime and lucrative oral contingency agreement” he had with his former legal firm. Basically, there are a lot of “handshake” deals in Hollywood, and nothing is ever put in writing. Johnny’s side argued that it wasn’t good enough, and there should have been a contract. But what the judge failed to acknowledge is that when you shake hands with Johnny, you have permanent evidence of your agreement. Do you know how many rounds of antibiotic ointment would be needed to get rid of the palm rash he left you with?

Pic: Wenn.com

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