On Monday, a judge in New York dismissed Justin Baldoni’s $400 million defamation lawsuit against Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, ruling that her allegations of sexual harassment were protected by law and not subject to legal action.
Variety reports that Lively filed a lawsuit in federal court against Baldoni, accusing him of sexual harassment and retaliation. She asserted that Baldoni and the “It Ends With Us” producers engaged in a smear campaign against her following her complaints about the film set’s conditions.
In response, Baldoni initiated a defamation lawsuit targeting The New York Times, Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, claiming they worked together to harm his professional reputation through false accusations.
Judge Lewis J. Liman of the US District Court in Manhattan dismissed Bladoni’s suit, which included extortion and other allegations, but allowed Baldoni to amend and refile specific claims concerning interference with contracts.
“Today’s opinion is a total victory and a complete vindication for Blake Lively, along with those that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties dragged into their retaliatory lawsuit, including Ryan Reynolds, Leslie Sloane and The New York Times,” Lively’s attorney said in a statement.
“As we have said from day one, this ‘$400 million’ lawsuit was a sham, and the Court saw right through it. We look forward to the next round, which is seeking attorneys’ fees, treble damages and punitive damages against Baldoni, Sarowitz, Nathan, and the other Wayfarer Parties who perpetrated this abusive litigation.”
The New York Times reports that Liman ruled that Baldoni’s lawsuit did not convincingly argue that Lively’s threats amounted to “wrongful extortion” instead of legitimate bargaining over working conditions.
He also stated that Baldoni’s team failed to prove defamation, as their claims were based solely on statements in Lively’s civil rights complaint, which are protected by privilege.
Liman also found that many statements from The Times were privileged because they came from Lively’s legal filing. He concluded that Baldoni had not shown that The Times acted with actual malice in publishing the article.
While Liman dismissed the claims of extortion and defamation, he permitted Baldoni to amend and refile breach of implied covenant and tortious interference with a contract complaint by June 23.
Check back for updates.
[Feature Photo:B lake Lively arrives at the LACMA Art+Film Gala on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)]
