Blake Lively Seeks $8 Million in Fees From Justin Baldoni After $400 Million Suit Failed
Updated
Updated · Variety · Jun 30
Blake Lively Seeks $8 Million in Fees From Justin Baldoni After $400 Million Suit Failed
3 articles · Updated · Variety · Jun 30
Summary
$8.04 million is what Blake Lively asked a judge to award for defending against Justin Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios' dismissed defamation case, including $7.5 million in legal fees and about $540,000 in costs.
The request follows Judge Lewis Liman's earlier ruling that Lively can recover fees under California's 2023 anti-retaliation law for sexual abuse accusers, though he denied her separate bid for damages.
Lively says Baldoni's $400 million suit was retaliatory after she accused her co-star and director of sexual harassment on the set of "It Ends With Us" and of orchestrating an online whisper campaign.
That defamation suit was thrown out after the judge found Lively's allegations protected by litigation privilege; Lively then dropped her own lawsuit in May without any payment changing hands, while preserving her fee claim.
Baldoni's lawyers, who earlier called any fee award limited and noted many of Lively's claims were dismissed before settlement, declined to comment on the new filing and can respond in court by July 13.