Judge awards Blake Lively $400G in legal fees after Justin Baldoni courtroom battle settled

Had sought more than $8M in legal costs to defend herself from defamation countersuit

Published Aug 26, 2026  •  2 minute read

Blake Lively leaves federal court following a court-ordered settlement conference in her civil lawsuit against actor and director Justin Baldoni. Photo by Timothy A. Clary / Files /AFP

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A New York judge has awarded Blake Lively more than $400,000 US to cover her legal fees following a courtroom battle with actor and director Justin Baldoni, a fraction of what the actress had requested.

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U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman ruled Lively be awarded $407,451.75 (C$565,400) in attorneys’ fees and court costs, according to an order dated Wednesday, People reported.

Lively had sought more than $8 million in legal costs to defend herself from a defamation countersuit filed by Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, co-founded by him in 2019.

According to the judge, Baldoni’s side has “the better of the argument” concerning the scope of the litigation and Lively was entitled only to “reasonable” fees.

‘Financial and reputational risks’

“The case as a whole presented substantial financial and reputational risks for all parties involved,” Liman wrote in the ruling, adding that it “involved complex legal issues.”

In December 2024, Lively filed a complaint in California alleging inappropriate comments made by Baldoni had created a hostile workplace environment during the filming of domestic abuse drama It Ends with Us.

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Baldoni, who also directed the film, was also accused of hiring a public relations firm to damage Lively’s reputation in a story published by the New York Times after Lively filed her sexual harassment complaint.

He countersued The Times for $250 million and, in January 2025, filed a $400 million countersuit against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist Leslie Sloane.

Liman dismissed Baldoni’s defamation-related counterclaims in June 2025.

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Legal battle settled in May

The dispute was eventually settled in May, just weeks before it was to go to trial, but no details about the agreement were made public.

In July, Baldoni and his wife Emily broke their silence about Lively’s lawsuit, saying they faced “injustice” and “trauma” by the accusations.

“We have not spoken publicly for the better part of the last two years, and it’s not because we haven’t had anything to say, because lord knows we have,” Baldoni said in a video posted to Instagram.

His wife said there’s been “a lot of trauma” in the aftermath of the litigation as the couple deals with the allegations, adding “the truth and the facts have spoken for themselves.”

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