Blake vs. Baldoni: The Copyright Battle’s Next Chapter
Here’s what you need to know about the developing legal situation between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni.
According to legal expert Gregory Doll, the actors’ legal battle surrounding *It Ends With Us* is far from over. Doll, an attorney and partner at Doll Amir & Eley in Los Angeles, who is not connected to the case, advises against celebrating too soon, even after the judge dismissed Baldoni’s countersuit.
“There’s still a lot left in the trial court proceedings, including amendments to the pleadings,” Doll explains. “As all litigators know, sometimes you win everything at trial only to see your case reversed on appeal.”
In a recent development, Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed Baldoni’s $400 million countersuit against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist Leslie Sloane, as well as his $250 million libel lawsuit against *The New York Times*. The legal saga initially began in December when Lively, 37, sued Baldoni, 41, for sexual harassment and retaliation, allegations he denies.
The judge has granted Baldoni the opportunity to amend two claims – breach of implied covenant and tortious interference with contract – by June 23.
Lively’s legal team hailed the judge’s decision as “a total victory and a complete vindication,” and Lively herself addressed the suit against her as “defeated” in an Instagram post, linking to several women’s rights organizations.
“The decision is undoubtedly a blow to Baldoni,” says Doll. “But the case is far from over. One thing I’ve learned many times over as a litigator is not to celebrate too early.”
Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, issued a statement asserting that Lively and her team’s “predictable declaration of victory is false,” maintaining that Lively’s allegations “are no truer today than they were yesterday.” He added, “With the facts on our side, we march forward with the same confidence that we had when Ms. Lively and her cohorts initiated this battle and look forward to her forthcoming deposition, which I will be taking.”
Doll reiterates that most civil cases settle before trial. He believes a settlement in this case is still “highly likely.” “That was true before this decision and after. Does this affect Lively’s leverage in settlement negotiations? Yes. Is Baldoni going to fight back, including amending his complaint to try to make the tortious interference and implied covenant claims stick? Yes.”
Doll clarifies that Baldoni has another chance to plead the accusation that Lively and Reynolds, as clients of WME, threatened their agency to drop Baldoni as a client. (WME has denied this.) The other claim concerns an *It Ends With Us* contract between Lively and Wayfarer Studios, which Baldoni’s team alleged “enabled her to consult and approve aspects of the film, and that she did not exercise that right in good faith.”
What will happen after Baldoni files to amend those two claims by the deadline? “We will then see another motion to dismiss filed by Lively’s counsel,” Doll predicts.
Regarding the lawsuit against *The New York Times*, Doll believes “I don’t think that Baldoni’s side ever thought that they were going to win.” He suggests that suit “was more of a PR move to get their story out to the public.”
An appeal can only occur after the case has been tried, with the trial currently scheduled for March 2026.
Stay tuned for more updates from Eternal Pen as this story unfolds. We’ll continue to bring you the latest developments.
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