The heated case of Blake Lively vs. Justin Baldoni is getting more complicated after the latter’s team fired back at Lively for requesting a gag order against their lawyer, calling it an “intimidation tactic.”
Three days ago on January 21, the legal team of Lively and Ryan Reynolds put in a request to Judge Lewis J. Liman, asking to prohibit Bryan Freedman from talking to the media. This demand was made after he released unedited It Ends With Us footage to “refute Ms. Lively’s characterization of his behavior.”
Highlights
- Baldoni's team calls Lively's request for a gag order against their lawyer an "intimidation tactic."
- Freedman's actions were deemed necessary to protect Baldoni, as per his legal team.
- Baldoni accused Lively and Ryan Reynolds of civil extortion and defamation seeking at least $400M in damages.
- Initial Pretrial Conference set for February 12, 2025, unless more claims are made.
Baldoni's legal team is firing back after Lively's gag order demand against his lawyer
Image credits: Nathan Congleton/Getty Images
“As Ms. Lively’s counsel have attempted, repeatedly, to caution Mr. Freedman, federal litigation must be conducted in court and according to the relevant rules of professional conduct,” the letter from Lively's team demanded, asking for a gag order.
They additionally claimed that Freedman was intentionally aiming at undermining the “character, credibility [and] reputation’ of numerous relevant parties,” by issuing “inflammatory” written statements as well as giving many television interviews.
But Baldoni’s team now has a response.
Image credits: Lia Toby/Getty Images
His lawyers say that Lively’s request to “defend themselves privately against allegations made publicly” is not a solid reason to impose a gag order, as read by the United States District Court.
“It is tactical gamesmanship, and it is outrageous,” they stated.
Baldoni's team believes Freedman’s moves were necessary in order to protect their client. They pointed out The New York Times article reporting that Lively had accused Baldoni and his team of trying to "bury" her reputation was leading to major fallout.
It wasn't tactical ground for Lively's team to "defend themselves privately" when her allegations were already made public, said Baldoni's team
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Additionally, the actress’s very public and “ruinous” accusations have caused Baldoni to be “exiled from polite society” and amassed damages of hundreds of millions of dollars, his lawyers claimed.
To push back against the alleged “media feeding frenzy” created by Lively, Justin Baldoni's legal team said they had no choice but to issue “a public response” to “avoid prejudice to [their clients].”
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Blake Lively first accused Justin Baldoni of sexual harassment in a civil rights lawsuit during the filming of Colleen Hoover’s best-selling book adaption It Ends With Us.
She additionally claimed he and his associates devised a "sophisticated plan to undermine her reputation,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Just last week, the director filed his own complaint against Lively and her husband for civil extortion and defamation. He sought least $400 million in damages after claiming he was “pressured” in accepting the mother-of-three’s rewrites of the film.
Justin Baldoni was initially accused of sexual harassment during production of It Ends With Us
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“At bottom, this is not a case about celebrities sniping at each other in the press,” the lawsuit read. “This is a case about two of the most powerful stars in the world deploying their enormous power to steal an entire film right out of the hands of its director and production studio.”
Image credits: vancityreynolds
Unless either of the celebrities makes more allegations against one another, the Initial Pretrial Conference for the case will be held on February 12, 2025.
Comments called out Lively's request for a gag order against Baldoni's lawyer
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