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Blake Lively will receive just over $400,000 of the $8 million she sought in legal fees from actor and director Justin Baldoni following the settlement of their legal battle over the production of their 2024 film It Ends With Us, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.
In a written decision, Manhattan Judge Lewis J. Liman explained why Lively was not entitled to the full amount her lawyers said she had incurred after Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer Studios LLC, filed counterclaims in response to her December 2024 lawsuit.
The judge acknowledged that Lively and Baldoni had “waged fierce battle against each other in court” but denied most of the legal fees she requested, citing limits on a California law intended to protect survivors of sexual harassment and discrimination from retaliatory lawsuits.
The judge acknowledged that Lively and Baldoni had ‘waged fierce battle against each other in court’ but denied most of the legal fees she requested (Getty)
The law meant to protect sex abuse survivors from legal actions designed to intimidate and silence victims could only be construed to let her be reimbursed for what she paid lawyers to defend against defamation claims rather than all claims Baldoni made against her, Liman wrote.
Thus, the judge ruled, Lively is entitled to $363,245 in attorneys’ fees and $44,206 in costs.
Requests for comment were sent to Baldoni and Lively’s representatives.
In her lawsuit, Lively asserted that she had been subjected to sexual harassment, retaliation, breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligent infliction of emotional distress and invasion of privacy.
Baldoni, who directed the dark romantic drama and starred in it with Lively, denied harassing her or orchestrating a smear campaign. He claimed the complaints about his behavior were made up by Lively as part of an effort to seize creative control of the movie.
Weeks after Lively sued, Baldoni and Wayfarer asserted claims in a countersuit against Lively and her husband, Deadpool actor Ryan Reynolds, of civil extortion, defamation, invasion of privacy, breach of good faith and fair dealing and economic interference.
In June 2025, Liman tossed out the countersuit Baldoni and Wayfarer had filed and nearly a year later rejected Lively’s sexual harassment claims on the grounds that she was an independent contractor rather than an employee when she worked on the film.
In early May, two weeks before a scheduled trial, Lively and Baldoni reached a settlement (Angela Weiss / AFP via Getty Images)
In early May, two weeks before a scheduled trial, Lively and Baldoni reached a settlement, saying in a joint statement that Lively’s concerns “deserved to be heard” and that they ”remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments.”
It Ends With Us, an adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s bestselling 2016 novel about a relationship devolving into domestic violence, was released in August 2024 and exceeded box office expectations despite criticism that it glorified abuse. Lively and Baldoni’s fractious falling out took attention away from the film, overshadowing its message and success.
Lively said in her lawsuit that during filming, Baldoni made inappropriate comments about her appearance, violated physical boundaries while filming a love scene, and pushed for nudity — against Lively’s wishes — during a scene in which her character was giving birth.
Baldoni denied doing anything outside the realm of the normal creative process of making a movie.
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.