Judge dismisses various claims in sexual harassment lawsuit filed by Blake Lively against Justin Baldoni

Blake Lively's legal battle against her "It Ends With Us" co-star and director, Justin Baldoni, has faced a setback. A judge dismissed most of her claims, including sexual harassment and defamation allegations, which is a significant development in the dispute.

A significant setback has occurred in Blake Lively's legal battle against her "It Ends With Us" co-star and director, Justin Baldoni. Judge Lewis Liman dismissed the majority of Lively's claims in a ruling issued on Thursday. Specifically, the court tossed out ten of the thirteen claims, which included allegations of harassment, defamation, and conspiracy.

Justin Baldoni weakens as judge throws out most of her claims

Despite the dismissals, the legal proceedings aren't entirely over. The judge did allow three claims to proceed to trial. These include claims of breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting in retaliation. These remaining claims will now be heard in a civil trial scheduled to begin in New York on May 18th. This indicates that while many of Lively's initial accusations have been dismissed, the core of the dispute continues.

The lawsuit originated in 2024, with Lively accusing Baldoni of harassment and a smear campaign during the film's production. Baldoni has denied these allegations and filed a countersuit. The specifics of the harassment claims involved accusations that Baldoni made inappropriate comments about Lively's appearance and weight. The judge's ruling further clarified that Lively's claims under federal and California law were not applicable due to her status as an independent contractor and the filming location in New Jersey.

She alleged Justin hired publicists to spread negative stories about her online as retaliation. The judge allowed two retaliation claims to proceed to trial. "We’re very pleased the Court dismissed all sexual harassment claims and every claim brought against the individual defendants," said attorneys Alexandria Shapiro and Jonathan Bach, representing Justin, Wayfarer Studios, and their publicists.

These were very serious allegations, and we are grateful to the court for its careful review of the facts, law, and voluminous evidence that was provided. What’s left is a significantly narrowed case, and we look forward to presenting our defense to the remaining claims in court.

What Blake’s legal team said

According to Variety, Sigrid McCawley, part of Blake's legal team, said the jury will decide if Blake was a victim of a retaliatory smear campaign.

This case has always been and will remain focused on the devastating retaliation and the extraordinary steps the defendants took to destroy Blake Lively’s reputation because she stood up for safety on the set and that is the case that is going to trial,” Sigrid said, adding, “She looks forward to testifying at trial and continuing to shine a light on this vicious form of online retaliation so that it becomes easier to detect and fight.

Claims by Blake’s team

The case originated from interactions between Justin and Blake on the set of "It Ends With Us". The film stars Blake as Lily Bloom, a woman who experienced domestic abuse as a child and finds herself in a similar situation later in life.

Blake's legal team claims Justin and Wayfarer Studios tried to damage her reputation through social media manipulation and working with journalists to create negative narratives. Blake shared these allegations in a New York Times article before suing. Justin's team counters that Blake made exaggerated claims to control the film and villainize him, calling her allegations "minor grievances". Mediation between the parties in February didn't lead to a settlement.