Blake Lively celebrated a significant legal win this week as a defamation lawsuit against her was dismissed in court.
The 38-year-old actress was named in a lawsuit filed in Texas last February by the public relations firm Street Relations Inc. and its owner, Jed Wallace.
Lively, known for her role in Gossip Girl, had previously implicated Wallace and his company in a legal complaint last year related to the production of “It Ends with Us.” The case was dismissed due to a lack of personal jurisdiction, casting doubt on Texas as the appropriate venue.
A source close to Baldoni shared with the Daily Mail regarding Wednesday’s decision: “Both cases were dismissed due to jurisdiction.”
“While Blake primarily attributed the alleged smear campaign to Jed, irrespective of the dismissal’s reasoning, Jed is no longer involved in Blake’s broader legal action,” the source added.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Lively’s representatives for additional comments on the matter.
Blake Lively, 38, racked up a meaningful legal victory this week when a defamation suit filed against her was thrown out of court.. Pictured in NYC September 5
It Ends with Us, directed by Baldoni, was a surprise hit when it arrived in theaters in 2024
A rep for Lively told TMZ that the latest development clears the path for the actress and her team to present a strong case when it arrives in court next spring.
‘With this decision, all of the retaliatory lawsuits filed against Blake Lively by Justin Baldoni, Wayfarer Studios and their crisis communications and digital teams have been dismissed,’ Lively’s rep told TMZ.
The rep added that ‘Ms. Lively will have her day in court on her claims at the March trial in New York.’
The Gossip Girl star claimed Baldoni had sexually harassed her while making It Ends with Us, which was a surprise hit when it arrived in theaters in August last year. Baldoni denied the allegation.
The movie earned $148 million in domestic box office, and $350 million globally – but whatever goodwill the film garnered has since been overshadowed by the allegations made by its stars.
The motion picture, which also starred Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj, Brandon Sklenar and Kevin McKidd, was based on the 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover.
The storyline of the film centered around a toxic relationship between Lily Bloom (played by Lively) and Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni).
According to a logline for the film, Lily ‘overcomes a traumatic childhood to embark on a new life,’ as ‘a chance meeting with a neurosurgeon sparks a connection but Lily begins to see sides of him that remind her of her parents’ relationship.’
In December of last year, Lively named Baldoni in a lawsuit accusing him of sexual harassment, retaliatory conduct, and intentional infliction of emotional stress.
It earned $148 million in domestic box office, and $350 million globally – but whatever goodwill the film garnered has since been overshadowed by the allegations made by its stars
Lively pictured June 9 in NYC, hours after a judge threw out Baldoni’s case against her
In her lawsuit, the actress accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her in multiple ways – including body shaming her – and orchestrating a smear campaign against her to damage her reputation.
In her lawsuit, Lively named a number of Baldoni’s collaborators, including his company Wayfarer Studios, the studio’s CEO and financial backer, and PR personnel Nathan and Abel.
Baldoni had initially asked for $250 million in damages from The New York Times, mentioning a report it published on the topic, then added it to the $400 million lawsuit he filed this past January.
In the suit, Baldoni named Lively, her spouse Ryan Reynolds and her publicist Leslie Sloane, citing the aforementioned report in legal documents. It was thrown out of court this past June.
All parties have denied all of the allegations against them.
