By Luc Cohen
New York: A US judge has admonished lawyers for Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively, telling them they should not publicly discuss the actors’ competing civil lawsuits stemming from Lively’s claim that Baldoni sexually harassed her while filming the movie It Ends With Us.
Lively’s lawyer Michael Gottlieb complained to US District Judge Lewis Liman at a hearing in a Manhattan federal court that Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman violated professional ethics rules for lawyers by accusing Lively of “bullying”.
Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively.Credit: Getty Images/Composite
“It’s very hard to un-ring the bell,” Gottlieb said, arguing that such statements could taint the jury pool for the scheduled March 2026 trial.
Freedman suggested that his comments to People magazine and in a podcast appearance were a response to a December 21 New York Times article that “completely devastated” Baldoni.
“This has not been a one-way street,” he said.
Gottlieb complained that Baldoni’s attorney had made inflammatory statements publicly that were devastating to Lively.
He said she was “very eager to move forward and have her day in court.”
Freedman, also representing Baldoni’s his production company, said his clients had suffered hundreds of millions of dollars in damages due to Lively’s claims that she was sexually harassed on the movie set.
Freedman said he didn’t want to say “they started it,” but that this is what occurred when Lively took her complaints about Baldoni to the media.
Liman adopted a New York state rule barring most out-of-court statements that could affect a case’s outcome, with an exception for protecting a client from prejudicial adverse publicity.
The judge could sanction lawyers for violations. Neither Gottlieb nor Freedman objected. Neither Lively nor Baldoni attended Monday’s hearing.
Lively sued Baldoni and his production company Wayfarer Studios on December 31.
Her claims included that Baldoni, who also directed It Ends With Us, kissed her beyond what was required during a scene he insisted be shot “over and over again”.
Lively also said Baldoni retaliated by launching a public smear campaign in anticipation of the sexual harassment allegations becoming public.
Baldoni and Wayfarer countered with a $400 million defamation lawsuit on January 16, saying the harassment allegations were false and Lively initiated the unchoreographed kissing.
They also accused Lively of plotting to release her own cut of the film, ousting Baldoni from marketing efforts, and using promotional efforts for the film to advertise her hair care and alcoholic beverage products.
Baldoni and Wayfarer have also sued the New York Times for $250 million, accusing the newspaper of defamation for uncritically taking Lively’s side in the December 21 article.
A Times spokesperson said the newspaper would vigorously defend against Baldoni’s lawsuit.
Reuters, AP
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