Actress Blake Lively is making a big move in her legal battle with Justin Baldoni. She’s asking a judge to order Baldoni to pay millions of dollars. This comes after Baldoni’s own defamation lawsuit against her was tossed out.
In a recent court filing from Tuesday, September 9, Lively’s legal team explained that she deserves "reasonable attorney’s fees and costs." This is because she successfully defended herself in court. News of this motion was first reported by Variety, with Us Weekly also obtaining the court papers.
The documents show that Lively, who is 38, isn’t just seeking her legal bills. She’s also pushing for "triple damages." This means she wants three times the money for the financial, emotional, and mental harm she says Baldoni’s lawsuit caused her. On top of that, she’s asking for "punitive damages," which are meant to punish Baldoni for allegedly misusing the legal system.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an important law in 2023. It’s called the Survivors’ Protection Against Weaponized Defamation Lawsuits Act, also known as AB 933. Lively’s legal team is using this law in their court filings. They say it makes sure people who face sexual harassment or revenge can tell their stories to courts, agencies, the news, and others without being scared of getting sued.
A spokesperson for Lively shared a statement with Us Weekly on Tuesday. "Sadly, Ms. Lively is not alone in facing a retaliatory defamation lawsuit after reporting workplace harassment," the spokesperson said. "That’s precisely why California passed AB 933: to make it clear that survivors are protected when they speak out, and that those who weaponize the legal system to silence them will be held accountable, not only for attorney’s fees but also for triple and punitive damages."
Us Weekly has tried to reach out to Baldoni’s legal team for their comments on this new motion.
Baldoni’s lawyers, however, disagree. They believe the AB 933 law doesn’t apply to Lively’s situation. They also argue that his defamation lawsuit wasn’t meant to scare her into silence. Instead, they insist it was based on solid facts.
According to a memo obtained by NewsNation, Baldoni’s legal team wrote, "In essence, Lively asks the court to determine that she is immune from all fault for her misdeeds, and that instead, it is the Wayfarer parties who should be punished for daring to exercise their constitutional right to seek remedy in court for her lies." This refers to Wayfarer Entertainment, Baldoni’s production company.
In earlier documents obtained by Variety, Baldoni’s team also claimed that Lively either completely made up her sexual harassment accusations or blew small, harmless interactions way out of proportion. They believe she did this on purpose to gain control of the movie they were working on. They also say she wanted to fix her reputation after some highly public marketing mistakes that hurt her image.
This whole legal drama started back in December 2024. Lively accused Baldoni, her co-star and director on the film It Ends With Us, of sexual harassment. She also claimed he created a bad work environment and deliberately planned a campaign to make her look bad. Lively then sued Baldoni, saying she was punished for reporting the sexual harassment.
Baldoni strongly denied all these claims and filed his own countersuit against Lively. In June, a judge dismissed his $400 million countersuit against the actress.
After the countersuit was thrown out, Lively’s lawyers released a statement to Us Weekly. "As we’ve said from day one, this ‘$400 million’ lawsuit was a sham, and the court clearly saw that," they stated. "We look forward to the next stage, which is seeking attorney’s fees, triple damages, and punitive damages."
The latest news is that Lively began her deposition on July 31. This is when she gives sworn testimony outside of court. Her main case against Baldoni is currently set to go to trial in March 2026.