The End Of The Road For Depp

Last year we commented on the decision of Mr Justice Nicol in Depp -v- Newspapers Group Ltd [2020] EWHC 2911 (QB) in which his widely reported "wife beater" libel claim was dismissed.

Depp's solicitors, Schillings, had described the decision as "perverse" and had stated his intention to apply for permission to appeal.

However, and unusually for a libel claim, there was very little in the judgment by way of complex law. In the 129-page ruling, only 5 of the 585 paragraphs analysed the law in relation to the defence of truth. The decision to dismiss the claim, therefore, rested heavily on the facts. This made any application for permission to appeal an uphill battle as the Court of Appeal will rarely interfere with a ruling based heavily on facts derived from live evidence. Notwithstanding this, true to his word Depp sought to appeal the decision by way of an application for permission to appeal.