Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively’s claims against Justin Baldoni
A federal judge in New York has dismissed most of the claims in Blake Lively’s sexual harassment and retaliation lawsuit against Justin Baldoni.
Judge Lewis Liman handed down his 152-page opinion and order on Thursday, April 2. The written ruling, obtained by USA TODAY, mostly granted — and in part denied — Baldoni and his codefendants’ motion for summary judgment, a bid to avert a trial that was scheduled to begin May 18.
A virtual court hearing is taking place the evening of April 2.
In a 2024 California complaint that was later followed by a lawsuit filed in New York federal court, Lively claimed Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios CEO Jamey Heath, a producer on “It Ends With Us,” engaged in inappropriate workplace behavior, then took part in a retaliatory “social manipulation” smear campaign against the actress.
Liman allowed three of the 13 legal claims — including breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting in retaliation — Lively brought against her director and costar Baldoni to proceed to trial. The remaining claims pertain to It Ends With Us Movie LLC (breach of agreement and retaliation), Baldoni’s production company Wayfarer Studios (retaliation), and The Agency Group PR LLC (aiding in retaliation), the company Lively had accused of organizing an online campaign that cast Lively in a negative light.
Ten claims, including those related to sexual harassment and defamation, were tossed out.
The sexual harassment claims were dismissed due to a jurisdiction issue; Liman wrote that though Lively sued under California law, the alleged misconduct did not take place in the state.
The legal battle commenced at the end of 2024, when Lively filed a California complaint alleging sexual harassment and retaliation by Baldoni and producer Jamey Heath, which was followed by a lawsuit filed in New York federal court.
What did the judge say in his dismissal?
In the document, Liman explained that “relevant considerations overwhelmingly point” to Lively being classified as an independent contractor rather than an employee due to her “degree of economic independence.” Therefore, he ruled that the actress was unable to bring sexual harassment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Liman also highlighted that the “social context” of the sexual harassment claims must be evaluated under the context in which they occurred, emphasizing that the two filmed several romantic scenes together. She acknowledged Lively’s claims that Baldoni gestured to kiss her during filming, kissed her forehead, rubbed his mouth against her neck, put his thumb to her mouth and leaned into her neck to say “it smells good.”
“Under this framing, it would be difficult to view Baldoni’s conduct as reflecting hostility or bias based on gender,” Liman wrote. “He was acting in the scene. Assuming he was improvising, the conduct was not so far beyond what might reasonably be expected to take place between two characters during a slow dancing scene such that an inference of hostile treatment on the basis of sex would arise,”
He continued: “Although these incidents could not, on their own, sustain a hostile work environment claim, sexual harassment claims must be viewed based on the totality of the circumstances.”
Justin Baldoni, codefendants ‘grateful’ for ‘significantly narrowed case’
Baldoni’s codefendants include producer Heath, his company Wayfarer Studios, its cofounder Steve Sarowitz, crisis public relations specialist Melissa Nathan, and publicist Jennifer Abel.
“We’re very pleased the Court dismissed all sexual harassment claims and every claim brought against the individual defendants: Justin Baldoni, Jamey Heath, Steve Sarowitz, Melissa Nathan, and Jennifer Abel,” the defendants’ lawyers, Alexandra Shapiro and Jonathan Bach, told USA TODAY in a statement.
“These were very serious allegations, and we are grateful to the Court for its careful review of the facts, law and voluminous evidence that was provided,” the statement added. “What’s left is a significantly narrowed case, and we look forward to presenting our defense to the remaining claims in court.”
The defendants have previously denied Lively’s assertion that they’d engaged in “a defamatory ‘smear campaign'” against her.
Instead, their lawyers argued in a Nov. 12 filing that Baldoni “sought the advice of a crisis-management public relations firm” merely to “minimize fallout from media coverage of Lively’s increasing attempts to alienate him from the film.”
In October, Liman entered a final judgment in the $400 million countersuit case from Baldoni and his codefendants, effectively terminating their January 2025 case against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and The New York Times. The parties have the right to appeal.
Blake Lively ‘looks forward to testifying’ as her case heads to trial
Sigrid McCawley, one of Lively’s attorneys, in a statement clarified that the sexual harassment count “isn’t going forward not because the defendants did nothing wrong but because the court determined Blake Lively was an independent contractor, not an employee.”
“This case has always been and will remain focused on the devasting retaliation and the extraordinary steps the defendants took to destroy Blake Lively’s reputation because she stood up for safety on the set and that is the case that is going to trial,” the statement continued. “For Blake Lively, the greatest measure of justice is that the people and the playbook behind these coordinated digital attacks have been exposed and are already being held accountable by other women they’ve targeted.”
Lively “looks forward to testifying at trial and continuing to shine a light on this vicious form of online retaliation so that it becomes easier to detect and fight,” McCawley said.
The high-profile dispute has, over the past year and a half, ensnared several other celebrities in Lively and Baldoni’s orbit as the discovery process in their case exposed the stars’ private communications.
Hundreds of exhibits, which were unsealed in January, included messages from Taylor Swift, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, and “It Ends With Us” star Jenny Slate, among other figures.
Judge tosses out Blake Lively’s sexual harassment claims against costar Justin Baldoni
NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge in New York tossed out actor Blake Lively’s sexual harassment claims Thursday against actor Justin Baldoni over their roles in the movie “It Ends With Us,” but he left intact two retaliation claims.
The written ruling by Judge Lewis J. Liman in Manhattan came after Lively sued Baldoni last December, alleging sexual harassment among over a dozen claims against Baldoni and other parties.
A trial is scheduled to start on May 18. A brief phone conference was conducted after Liman issued his ruling. On the call, lawyers discussed the process of jury selection for the trial.
Baldoni and production company Wayfarer Studios had countersued Lively and her husband, “Deadpool” actor Ryan Reynolds, accusing them of defamation and extortion. The judge dismissed Baldoni’s claims last June.
In his ruling, Liman determined that Lively was an independent contractor rather than an employee. On that basis, he said she was not entitled to bring sexual harassment claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. That law prohibits employment discrimination on various grounds, including gender.
In an analysis of the sexual harassment claims, the judge said Lively’s claims had to be viewed in the context of the movie they were working on.
“Lively claims that during filming, Baldoni leaned in and gestured as if he was intending to kiss her, and that he kissed her forehead, rubbed his face and mouth against her neck, put his thumb to her mouth and flicked her lower lip, caressed her, and leaned into her neck, saying ‘it smells good,'” the judge wrote.
He said there was no question that the conduct would support a hostile work environment claim if it happened on a factory floor or in an executive suite.
However, the judge noted, Baldoni was “acting in the scene.”
“Assuming he was improvising, the conduct was not so far beyond what might reasonably be expected to take place between two characters during a slow dancing scene such that an inference of hostile treatment on the basis of sex would arise. At least in isolation, the conduct was directed to Lively’s character rather than to Lively herself,” he wrote.
“Creative artists, no less than comedy room writers, must have some amount of space to experiment within the bounds of an agreed script without fear of being held liable for sexual harassment,” Liman added.
Lawyers in the case did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“It Ends With Us,” an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling 2016 novel that begins as a romance but takes a dark turn into domestic violence, was released in August 2024, exceeding box office expectations with a $50 million debut. But the movie’s release was shrouded by speculation over discord between Lively and Baldoni.
Lively appeared in the 2005 film “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants” and the TV series “Gossip Girl” from 2007 to 2012 before starring in films including “The Town” and “The Shallows.”
Baldoni starred in the TV comedy “Jane the Virgin,” directed the 2019 film “Five Feet Apart” and wrote “Man Enough,” a book challenging traditional notions of masculinity.
Blake Lively at 38: Inside her realistic fitness & wellness routine
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