Lively’s attorneys are taking aim at Baldoni, his ‘It Ends with Us’ collaborators and their legal teams in a motion filed on May 19
Elizabeth Rosner joined PEOPLE as a Senior Reporter in 2024. Her work previously appeared in the New York Post and The Messenger.
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NEED TO KNOW
Blake Lively’s attorneys are taking aim at Justin Baldoni, his It Ends with Us collaborators and their legal teams in a motion filed on May 19
In the documents seeking sanctions, Lively’s lawyers accuse the other side of making “frivolous, baseless claims against” her
The case is set to go to trial in March 2026
Blake Lively is taking aim at the producers and legal team of It Ends with Us amid her high-profile legal battle with director-costar Justin Baldoni.
On Monday, May 19, lawyers for the actress-producer, 37, filed a motion seeking sanctions in the form of attorneys’ fees against all plaintiffs, including attorneys attorneys for Baldoni, 41, accusing plaintiffs Steve Sarowitz, Jamey Heath, Melissa Nathan, Jennifer Abel and their legal teams teams of, in part, making “frivolous, baseless claims against” Lively.
“In their Notice of Motion, Lively’s attorneys’ state that “The [M]otion seeks sanctions in the form of attorneys’ fees and costs that Ms. Lively incurred,” as well as “a formal reprimand, and any sanctions that the Court deems just and proper.” The Motion claims that “Plaintiffs’ Counsel acted willfully with the intent of harassing Ms. Lively, causing unnecessary delay, and increasing the cost of litigation.”
Referring to the recent suggestion from Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman that he “would take Ms. Lively’s deposition at Madison Square Garden, charge tickets for admission to attend, and livestream the testimony for the world to watch,” Lively’s team condemned the “ghoulish taunt,” adding that “federal courts are venues for the adjudication of justice, not playgrounds for retribution or public relations.”
Lively’s lawyers also noted that Baldoni’s legal team “filed two letters and an affidavit so inflammatory and improper that they were stricken from the record,” referring to Freedman’s bombshell claim last week that Lively had pressured her friend Taylor Swift to publicly support her amid the legal turmoil.
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Referring to Bryan Freedman in a statement to PEOPLE on Monday, May 19, Lively’s attorneys Esra Hudson and Mike Gottlieb explained that: “If you want to know why Justin Baldoni’s lawyer pulled his latest inflammatory and defamatory media stunt, it might be because he knew that both he and his clients were about to be hit with sanctions motions based on his reckless decision to file multiple frivolous claims in federal court. You can’t file lawsuits in federal court that have no basis in law or fact to create a harassing media narrative, or in other words, their strategy from day one. The Baldoni legal team received notice of their sanctionable behavior weeks ago, but doubled down rather than withdrawing their frivolous and harassing claims. Now they’ll face the consequences of treating federal court like a media playground.”
PEOPLE is out to Baldoni’s lawyers for comment.
Lively and Baldoni’s legal battle began in December 2024, when Lively filed a sexual-harassment complaint against Baldoni, and alleged that he engaged in misconduct during the film’s production. The actress also accused Baldoni and his associates of launching a retaliatory smear campaign meant to “destroy” her reputation, which he has denied.
Baldoni countered Lively’s initial claim in January with a $400 million lawsuit against her, her husband Ryan Reynolds and their publicist Leslie Sloane, alleging extortion, defamation and more.
He also sued the New York Times for $250 million after the outlet reported that he and his public-relations team were behind the alleged smear campaign against Lively.
