Johnny Depp is going to have a harder time defending himself in court

A judge denied Johnny Depp’s attorney a request to depose Amber Heard immediately so she could better prepare a defense ahead of their June 17 hearing, which will determine whether a temporary restraining order against Depp can be extended. The Black Mass actor’s lawyer, Laura Wasser, was told by the court that her original notice of deposition doesn’t give Heard the required 10 days needed to prepare sworn out-of-court testimony that can be used at the trial.

Wasser heard the word “no” a bunch of times that day. Her request for Heard to provide all communication, including texts and documents, to back her abuse claims from Dec. 15 until now? Denied, because Heard’s attorney Samantha Spector said it was “unduly burdensome” to ask the actress to “review over six months of personal communication with potentially every person she has spoken with.” Wasser’s request to have neighbor Raquel Pennington’s testimony excluded at the June hearing? Also denied.

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Spector went on to argue that Heard’s deposition is unnecessary because she provided sufficient testimony when she filed for the restraining order against Depp on May 27. Heard was reportedly en route to Pennington’s engagement party in New Jersey at the time the request was made and wouldn’t have been available anyway, but she stated in court documents, “I remain willing to attend my deposition on a mutually convenient date in the future and cooperate with any required requests in that regard.”

Pennington is already set to give her deposition on June 16 — but this is obviously not going to allow Depp’s defense team a whole lot of time to prepare a strong defense at the domestic violence hearing the next day. And, without Heard’s deposition, they’re also losing key information about specific accusations she plans on making against him.

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If the court’s latest ruling is any indication of the way things might go at the hearing and beyond that, it seems like Depp is not going to be let off the hook easily or treated like a special snowflake because of his fame. It may be within the law to deny Wasser’s request, but whether it’s a fair thing to do — well, everyone will have a different opinion about that one.

And there’s always the possibility that June 17 will be one of the last times Depp and Heard have to deal with the court. Court documents reportedly indicate that both celebs are discussing a “settlement conference.”