A judge shut down Blake Lively’s “overly intrusive” request for Justin Baldoni’s phone records in the heated legal battle.
Lively’s legal team subpoenaed the phone records of Baldoni and others involved in the courtroom showdown over an alleged plot to ruin the actress’ reputation. However, Judge Lewis Liman partially denied the actress’ request in an order filed Friday and obtained by Fox News Digital.
“The Court put a stop to Ms. Lively’s egregious attempt to invade our clients’ privacy,” Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, told Fox News Digital in a statement. “This is a big win. No matter how the Lively Parties may try to spin this decision, the Court saw their efforts for what they really are: a desperate fishing expedition intended to salvage their debunked claims long after they already savaged our clients’ reputations in the New York Times.”
JUSTIN BALDONI CALLS OUT BLAKE LIVELY FOR DEMANDING PRIVACY AFTER PUBLICIZING SEXUAL HARASSMENT ALLEGATIONS
Liman denied Lively’s request specifically for Baldoni’s records but gave the “Gossip Girl” star options to subpoena records from “non-parties.”
“This request implicates legitimate privacy interests,” the federal judge wrote. “Even though Lively has narrowed her request to exclude the content of calls or messages, the phone records themselves would still contain sensitive information regarding which doctors, psychologists, or even acquaintances the Wayfarer Parties spoke to, and when.”
BLAKE LIVELY VS. JUSTIN BALDONI: EVERYTHING TO KNOW
However, Lively will be able to request phone records of others who may have been involved in the alleged smear campaign.
“Lively may make discovery requests tailored to those individuals,” Liman noted. “She is permitted to use the tools of discovery to identify the contact information or telephone numbers for those individuals. Even assuming additional individuals participated in the alleged campaign, the hope that discovery will turn up information on such participants does not justify the broad scope of the Subpoenas.”
He added, “The Wayfarer Parties may assert a privacy interest in their own phone records, but they have not provided any basis for asserting an interest in the communications of non-parties.”
Lively’s team revealed that they are sending requests “directly” following Liman’s order.
“What is Bryan Freedman hiding? After promising to release all the ‘receipts,’ Freedman ran into court to keep secret the phone records of who Baldoni, Heath, Sarowitz, Nathan, Wallace and Abel were calling during their retaliatory campaign,” a spokesperson for Lively told Fox News Digital.
“So, instead of getting these records from the phone carriers the way we initially requested, the judge has ruled that if we simply submit more specific requests, we will be able to get the records we are seeking. Today we will do that, we are submitting those requests directly to defendants involved, and we look forward to seeing the records.”
LIKE WHAT YOU’RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds’ legal team subpoenaed phone records of Baldoni and others on Feb. 13. Lively accused Baldoni of setting out on a smear campaign after allegedly sexually harassing the actress on the set of “It Ends With Us.”
“Ms. Lively has initiated discovery that will expose the people, tactics, and methods that have worked to ‘destroy’ and ‘bury’ her reputation and family over the past year,” Lively’s lawyers, Mike Gottlieb and Esra Hudson, told Fox News Digital in a statement at the time.
“We will now receive all of the ‘receipts’ that, unsurprisingly, are nowhere to be found on Mr. Freedman’s website, and like Ms. Lively, those ‘receipts’ will have their day in court.”
In December, Lively detailed allegations of sexual harassment, retaliation, intentional affliction of emotional distress, negligence and more against Baldoni and film producer Jamey Heath in a complaint first filed with the California Civil Rights department and later in federal court.
Baldoni, in his own lawsuit filed in January, insisted that Lively had “falsely” accused him in an attempt to repair her reputation amid the fallout around the movie’s press tour after the actress took control of the film. Baldoni’s legal team claimed that Lively had no evidence of a deliberate smear campaign and instead worked to repair her reputation by accusing the actor and others of sexual harassment.
In an amended complaint, Lively claimed that two additional female cast members are willing to testify during the scheduled 2026 trial. However, Baldoni’s lawyer slammed the new version of the lawsuit as “unsubstantial hearsay.”
Read the full article here
