Johnny Depp settles long legal battle with lawyer

Hollywood actor Johnny Depp has settled a long-running legal battle with a former lawyer he accused of wrongly collecting millions of dollars in fees.

A lawyer representing Depp said he had won an "eight-figure" settlement from Jake Bloom's firm, Bloom Hergott.

Depp had alleged Mr Bloom improperly collected more than $30m (£23m) over their 18-year working relationship.

A trial had been scheduled to begin in December.

In a statement, Depp's lawyer Adam Waldman said: "Today, Bloom Hergott provided Johnny Depp an eight-figure payment to settle Mr Depp's lawsuit against the firm for fraud, conflict of interest, disgorgement of over $30m in voidable fees and other malfeasance that they engaged in over nearly two decades."

Depp, who has starred in blockbuster films including Pirates Of The Caribbean, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Alice In Wonderland, sued Mr Bloom in October 2017.

He argued their agreement should have been in writing, rather than based on a handshake as is often the case in Hollywood.

Mr Bloom counter-sued and asked a judge to throw the case out. But in August 2018, Depp, 56, scored a key victory when a judge in Los Angeles ruled in his favour.