A federal judge has thrown out the majority of the allegations in Blake Lively's highly publicized lawsuit against her It Ends With Us co-star and director, Justin Baldoni. Out of the thirteen original claims, ten—including sexual harassment and defamation—were formally dismissed.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman ruled that three remaining claims—breach of contract, retaliation, and aiding and abetting in retaliation—hold enough legal weight to move forward. The surviving allegations will be heard in a New York civil trial scheduled for May 18.
In a sprawling 152-page opinion, Judge Liman detailed the legal reasoning behind the dismissals, noting that the sexual harassment allegations failed largely due to jurisdictional technicalities. Lively had filed her harassment claims under California law; however, because the alleged on-set misconduct took place in New Jersey, the judge found no "substantial connection" to California. Additionally, Liman ruled that Lively's legal classification as an independent contractor, rather than an employee, rendered her ineligible to bring certain workplace harassment claims.
Sigrid McCawley, a member of Lively's legal team, emphasized that the harassment charges were dropped over procedural technicalities rather than a lack of merit. McCawley confirmed that Lively intends to testify at the upcoming trial, focusing her legal strategy on what she described as Baldoni's "devastating retaliation" and ongoing efforts to destroy the actress's reputation.
The judge also tossed out Lively's defamation claims against Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman. Liman noted that Freedman's public statements were directly tied to the active litigation, adding that Baldoni's Wayfarer Studios had every legal right to hire crisis management specialists to defend their reputation. However, the judge conceded that a coordinated campaign to attack Lively's character "arguably crossed the line," justifying the upcoming trial for the retaliation claims.
The bitter legal feud stems from the fraught production of It Ends With Us, a blockbuster adaptation of Colleen Hoover's best-selling novel about domestic abuse. Lively has repeatedly accused Baldoni and his studio of utilizing media manipulation and friendly journalists to orchestrate a smear campaign against her.
Thursday's ruling is the latest twist in a sprawling Hollywood battle. Earlier this year, Judge Liman dismissed a massive $400 million defamation and extortion countersuit filed by Baldoni against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist. Baldoni had alleged the trio hijacked the film's promotional tour and sabotaged his career, claims the judge ultimately rejected as standard industry "hard bargaining" rather than unlawful extortion.