Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni at the premiere ofIt Ends with Usin New York City, August 2024.Photo:Gotham/WireImage (2)
Gotham/WireImage (2)
Blake Livelyhas allegedly requested forJustin Baldoni’s lead attorney,Bryan Freedman, not to take her deposition in court.
In a letter to Judge Lewis J. Liman filed Thursday, Jan. 30, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, another lawyer for Baldoni, Kevin Fritz, claimed that Lively andRyan Reynolds' legal team “stated their objection to the Wayfarer Parties’ lead counsel conducting the deposition of Blake Lively.”
PEOPLE is out to Lively’s legal team for comment.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories.
Fritz’s letter additionally stated, “We are unaware of any situation that would warrant the deposed party to have a choice in which attorney takes her deposition.”
“Parties to litigation simply do not have the right to dictate which of their opponents’ attorneys may or may not take their deposition or perform any other aspect of the opposing party’s case,” he added.
In turn,Baldoni countersued Lively, her husband Reynolds, 48, and their publicist Leslie Sloane, as well as Sloane’s PR firm Vision PR, Inc., on accusations of defamation and extortion.
Both cases inLively v. Wayfarer Studios et al.are scheduled fortrial on March 9, 2026, Judge Liman outlined in an order filed Monday, Jan. 27.
The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!
Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds in New York City on May 2, 2022; Justin Baldoni in Los Angeles on Dec. 4, 2024.Theo Wargo/WireImage; Araya Doheny/Variety via Getty
Theo Wargo/WireImage; Araya Doheny/Variety via Getty
Fritz also stated in his Thursday letter that Baldoni’s team “look forward to further discussing” the deposition “matter” at the upcoming pre-trial conference on Monday, Feb. 3, which has been scheduled to hash outLively’s prospective request for a gag order.
After Freedmanleaked a 10-minute videofrom theIt Ends With Usset earlier this month andannounced plans for a website to disclose more, lawyers for Lively motioned for a conference before Judge Liman to address “the appropriate conduct of counsel.”
They wrote in the letter that “federal litigation must be conducted in court and according to the relevant rules of professional conduct” and claimed Freedman’s interviews and statementsrisked “tainting the jury pool.”
Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni inIt Ends with Us(2024).Sony Pictures Entertainment
Sony Pictures Entertainment
Reynolds and Lively’s legal team also filed a notice on Thursday in accordance with Judge Liman’s order, which outlined the next steps for their federal case.
In their letter submitted to Judge Liman Thursday, Michael J. Gottlieb, an attorney for Lively, Reynolds and Wayfarer Studios LLC, wrote, “The Lively-Reynolds Partiesintend to move to dismiss Plaintiffs’ complaint.”
source: people.com
