The acting couple Johnny Depp and Amber Heard are getting divorced after only 15 months. She reportedly filed papers only a few days after Depp’s mother died, spurring rumors that the Depp family hated Heard, his newer younger wife, according to the Daily Mail.
While some media outlets are focusing on the family — most notably the fact that Depp’s sister and production company manager has spoken out about the divorce — others are focused on the divorce lawyers. People noted that Depp is represented in the divorce by Laura Wasser, whose name is becoming almost as common as the many celebrities she represents, while Heard is represented by Samantha Spector, who is less famous but a rising star.
The Lawyers
Laura Wasser is a partner at the Los Angeles family law firm her father started in 1976, Wasser, Cooperman & Mandles. She has an impressive celebrity client roster, including Drew Barrymore’s latest divorce and the end of Kim Kardashian’s first marriage to Kris Humphries. Wasserman charges $ 850 an hour reportedly, with a $ 25,000 retainer fee. She joined her father’s firm straight out of Loyola Law School at age 26 in 1995.
Earlier this year, Wasser made waves by speaking to Bloomberg News about how she handles her cases, revealing that she has her celebrities file for divorce in groups to distract from the media attention these matters get. At the time she hinted at a slew of divorces to come in the spring but it is not apparent whether she was representing Johnny Depp at the time.
Heard is represented by Samantha Spector, who is the founder of her own law firm, Spector Law, which she started in 2012. Interestingly, she — like Wasser — graduated from Loyola Law School, only it was in 1999, so four years later than Wasser, and she didn’t go work for her dad apparently.
The Couple
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard were not married long, just over a year. Depp has two teenage children with the French singer Vanessa Paradis, and reportedly the kids hate Heard. According to the Daily Mail, though, the split was Heard’s idea and may have been prompted by Depp’s devotion to his family. He reportedly moved his mother to their home just before she passed away.
While everyone else gets excited about his divorce, Depp is playing it cool. His spokesman issued a statement about the end of the marriage saying, “Given the brevity of this marriage and the most recent and tragic loss of his mother, Johnny will not respond to any of the salacious false stories, gossip, misinformation and lies about his personal life.”
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Related Resources:
- Drew Barrymore’s Third Divorce Likely to Avoid Court (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)
- Uncontested Divorce (FindLaw’s Learn About the Law)
- What Is Divorce Law? (FindLaw’s Learn About the Law)
- Cancel That: Khloe Kardashian Calls Off Divorce From Lamar Odom (FindLaw’s Celebrity Justice)