Johnny Depp and his London lawyer girlfriend Joelle Rich ‘were dating’ during his US court battle against Amber Heard in this summer – but ‘aren’t exclusive’, sources connected to the pair claimed.
They added that Schillings lawyer Rich had no role in his legal defence and was not there for business reasons – but that Depp is not looking for a serious relationship at this point in time.
The Pirates of the Caribbean star, 59, won a defamation battle against Amber Heard in June over her 2018 article for The Washington Post, in which she claimed to be a victim of domestic abuse.
Heard, 36, was ordered to pay Depp more than $8million in damages.
Sources have now told TMZ that Depp was dating his former attorney Joelle Rich throughout the court case this summer, saying they were ‘very much’ an item.
Johnny Depp and his London lawyer girlfriend Joelle Rich ‘were dating’ during his US court battle against Amber Heard in this summer, sources have claimed. The pair are pictured outside Fairfax County Circuit Court on April 26 this year
But the TMZ source said: ‘He’s f*****g Johnny Depp’, meaning he has no plans to settle down with just one partner yet.
The latest news appears to confirm earlier speculation that the two were together throughout the trial in the summer.
They said Joelle, a 37-year-old mother of two, left her children and her estranged husband in the UK while she supported Depp in his trial in Virginia.
The Mail was previously told by a source that: ‘She was not there in a professional capacity as she wasn’t on the U.S. team who were dealing with the case.
‘There was a big U.S. legal team and she was not a part of it. Let’s say that it was obvious that something was in the air between them.
‘Everyone kind of intuited it during the court case because of the behaviour on both sides.’
Sources have now told TMZ that Depp was dating his former attorney Joelle Rich throughout the court case this summer, saying the pair were ‘very much’ an item
Friends of Joelle said she ‘dropped off the radar’ in June when she wasn’t in London. The lawyer was not part of Depp’s legal team and was reportedly not present at this year’s trial for business reasons
Friends of Joelle said she ‘dropped off the radar’ in June when she suddenly wasn’t in London anymore.
The move confused many as Rich only moved into her £1million house in north London about a year ago with financier husband Jonathan Rich – as friends said everything in their world seemed solid and they had even embarked on home improvements together.
Ms Rich and her husband Jonathan are now reportedly in the process of a divorce.
The lawyer who is reported to be in a ‘serious’ relationship with Johnny Depp was pictured alongside him during his libel battle at London’s High Court more than two-years-ago
Images taken at the time showed them smiling, chatting and looking relaxed in each other’s company during the actor’s ill-fated court battle in July 2020
Ms Rich was part of Depp’s legal team in the High Court in her role as a partner for leading London privacy lawyers Schillings whose clients include Prince Harry and wife Meghan.
Images of them arriving at court together in High Court libel battle more than two years ago shows them smiling and chatting together.
The pictures, which were taken on the fifth day of the trial on July 13, 2020, showed Ms Rich seemingly gazing towards Depp as they left the court together.
Joelle Rich attended North London Collegiate School, an independent girls’ day school with fees of £22,308 a year.
She studied law at Birmingham University in 2003 – where she is believed to have met her husband – and worked at DLA Piper before joining Schillings in 2011.