Blake Lively Seeks Legal Fees and Damages as ‘It Ends With Us’ Dispute with Justin Baldoni Drags On

Blake Lively’s legal battle with Justin Baldoni over the 2024 film It Ends With Us is not yet over, despite the recent settlement of parts of their dispute.

Lively, who recently settled her lawsuit against Baldoni’s production company, is continuing to seek damages from the actor-director and his Wayfarer Studios, her lawyers said on Thursday.

According to a filing in a federal court in Manhattan, Lively wants Baldoni and the studio to cover her legal fees and pay damages for filing what she described as a “retaliatory” defamation lawsuit. The lawsuit had been dismissed by the judge overseeing the case last June.

“As the ‘prevailing defendant’, Ms Lively is entitled not only to attorneys’ fees and costs, but also to compensatory damages tripled, and punitive damages,” the filing stated.

The latest request extends a bitter legal dispute that began in December 2024, when Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment during the filming of It Ends With Us, a movie centred on domestic violence.

US District Judge Lewis Liman dismissed Lively’s harassment claims and all claims against Baldoni on April 2, but ruled that she could continue pursuing retaliation claims. Both parties announced on Monday that they had settled the remaining claims.

“By agreeing to this settlement, and waiving their right to appeal, Justin Baldoni and every individual defendant now face personal liability for abusing the legal system to silence and intimidate Ms Lively,” her lawyers, Michael Gottlieb and Esra Hudson, said in a joint statement on Thursday.

Bryan Freedman, Baldoni’s lawyer, said in a separate statement that Lively agreed to the settlement because she knew she would lose the case.

“All that remains is a pending request for fees based on a very narrow issue that has been before the court since September,” he said.

Lively’s legal team described Monday’s settlement as a “resounding victory” for the actress, while Freedman called it a “total victory” for Baldoni.

Lively is seeking legal fees and damages under a 2023 California law designed to protect sexual harassment complainants from retaliatory defamation lawsuits filed by alleged perpetrators.

Baldoni’s $400 million lawsuit accused Lively, her husband and fellow actor Ryan Reynolds, and others of attempting to damage his reputation and seize creative control of the film.

Judge Liman ruled that Baldoni had failed to prove Lively defamed him, adding that any allegedly defamatory statements she made to a California civil rights agency were legally privileged.

It Ends With Us starred Lively as a flower shop owner who marries a neurosurgeon portrayed by Baldoni. According to Box Office Mojo, the film grossed more than $351 million worldwide.

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