Blake Lively scored another courtroom victory in his protracted legal battle with Justin Baldoni. A federal judge ruled that Baldoni and his company must cover the actress’s legal fees following his failed defamation suit against her.
While the ruling wasn’t a complete victory for Lively, it still marked a significant development in one of Hollywood’s most closely watched legal disputes.
Blake Lively scores a legal victory as Justin Baldoni wants to cover his fees in court
According to rulings issued by U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman, Lively became entitled to recover attorney’s fees after defending herself against Baldoni’s dismissed defamation claim.
The dispute stemmed from allegations made by Lively against her “It ends with us” co-star and director. Lively had accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and retaliation, while Baldoni responded with a massive $400 million defamation lawsuit, claiming the actress had made up allegations in an attempt to gain control of the film.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, this lawsuit was ultimately dismissed, and the court later considered whether Lively could recover legal costs under the California Survivors Protection Against Gun Defamation Law. For the uninitiated, this law is designed to protect victims of sexual harassment from retaliatory legal action.
Judge Liman ruled in Lively’s favor on that issue. However, the actress did not receive everything she asked for. In addition to attorneys’ fees, Lively had requested treble damages and punitive damages. The court denied these requests.
“The Act does not put an end to the entire set of carefully crafted federal rules of procedure designed to protect the rights of parties,” Judge Liman wrote in the ruling, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
The judge further explained that compensatory and punitive damages “do not fall within this exception,” limiting Lively’s recovery to attorneys’ fees.
Liman also found that there was insufficient evidence that Baldoni or his production company, Wayfarer Studios, acted with the level of malice required to justify additional damages.
The ruling came just weeks after both sides reached an eleventh-hour settlement that prevented the case from going to trial. Under this agreement, neither party could appeal the judge’s decision on attorney’s fees.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK THE BLAKE LIVELY AND JUSTIN BALDONI LEGAL DRAMA IS FINALLY OVER?
Originally reported by Vanshika Vasundhare Singh for Mandatory
