Justin Baldoni misses court deadline in lawsuits against Blake Lively and NY Times as her demands are revealed

Justin Baldoni misses chance to appeal ruling that invalidates multimillion-dollar defamation claims against Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds and the New York Times

New court documents obtained by the Daily Mail reveal that a final judgment has been issued, officially ending Baldoni’s lawsuits against Lively, Reynolds and The New York Times.

The 52-year-old actor/director had set a deadline for appeal after the judge dismissed the case in June, but that deadline quietly ended without any action being taken.

The decision marks a serious blow for Baldoni, who filed a $400 million lawsuit against the Times; Baldoni accused the newspaper of slandering him with its bombshell expose detailing Lively’s sexual harassment allegations on the set of It Ends With Us; these claims have been repeatedly denied.

The legal battle erupted last year when Lively accused Baldoni of inappropriate behavior on set, prompting her and her company Wayfarer Studios to respond by filing a defamation lawsuit against Lively, her publicist Leslie Sloane, and her husband Ryan Reynolds.

But now that counterattack has collapsed, leaving Baldoni as the only one facing Lively’s sexual harassment lawsuit.

New court documents obtained by the Daily Mail reveal that a final decision has been made officially ending Baldoni’s lawsuits against Lively, Reynolds and The New York Times

According to the latest filings, Lively is trying to recover her attorney fees while defending against Baldoni’s unsuccessful claims.

The Daily Mail has reached out to representatives for Baldoni, Lively and Reynolds for further comment on the story.

The news comes after the latest allegations in the ongoing lawsuit between the former co-stars focused on allegations that the actor illegally used technology to orchestrate a smear campaign against his co-star.

Lawyers for Lively, 38, said in a court filing obtained by the Daily Mail on Wednesday that Baldoni and his team of attorneys, agents and public relations experts used digital tricks to conceal critical evidence in legal proceedings.

His team claimed: ‘Defendants hid the ball at every stage of the discovery process, either by failing to produce documents or by improperly concealing them under attorney-client privilege.’

Lively’s lawyers said the maneuvers in Baldoni’s camp had forced ‘at least twelve discovery-related motions to date’ against them.

A former employee of Baldoni’s at Jonesworks LLC (a PR firm and a third-party defendant in the case) made similar allegations in a filing Wednesday. Deadline filed a report after reviewing court documents.

Lawyers for Lively, who is married to actor Ryan Reynolds, 48, said in a court filing that Baldoni coordinated an effort with partners from Wayfarer Studios and public relations experts such as Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel that involved apps, auto-deleting messages and other digital elements.

After the judge dismissed the case in June, the 52-year-old actor/director was given a period of time to appeal, but this period ended quietly without any action being taken.

The decision marks a serious blow for Baldoni, who filed a $400 million lawsuit against the Times; Baldoni accused the newspaper of slandering him with its bombshell expose detailing Lively’s sexual harassment allegations on the set of It Ends With Us; the allegations have been repeatedly denied.

Baldoni and his team worked together to attempt to destroy Lively’s reputation through the use of multiple digital sources, including the Signal app; voice notes; Lawyers for the Los Angeles-born actress said in the court paper that she and other software were also found.

Lively’s lawyers said in the lawsuit that Baldoni and his associates took many actions that indicated they were aware that future lawsuits might be filed and tried to conceal information about the case that would not be advantageous if made public.

Details about Signal and other efforts were gleaned from depositions with former Nathan employees, including Katherine Case and Breanna Butler, Deadline reported, citing legal documents it reviewed.

The Gossip Girl star claimed Baldoni sexually assaulted her while filming It Ends with Us, which became a surprise hit when it was released in August last year. Baldoni denied the allegation.

The film grossed $148 million at the domestic box office and $350 million worldwide; but the goodwill the film earned has since been overshadowed by the stars’ claims.

The film, which also stars Jenny Slate, Hasan Minhaj, Brandon Sklenar and Kevin McKidd, is adapted from Colleen Hoover’s 2016 novel.

The film’s story focused on the toxic relationship between Lily Bloom (played by Lively) and Ryle Kincaid (Baldoni).

Directed by Baldoni, It Ends With Us became a surprise hit when it was released in 2024.

It grossed $148 million at the domestic box office and $350 million worldwide; but the goodwill the film earned has since been overshadowed by the stars’ claims.

According to the film’s logline, Lily ‘overcomes a traumatic childhood to start a new life’ as ‘a chance meeting with a neurosurgeon leads to a connection, but Lily begins to see sides of him that remind her of her parents’ relationship.’

In December of last year, Lively named Baldoni in a lawsuit accusing him of sexual harassment, retaliatory conduct and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

In her lawsuit, the actress accused Baldoni of sexually harassing her in various ways (including body-shaming her) and orchestrating a smear campaign against her to tarnish her reputation.

Lively named a number of collaborators in her lawsuit, including Baldoni’s company, Wayfarer Studios, the studio’s CEO and financial backer, and public relations staff Nathan and Abel.

Baldoni first requested compensation of $250 million by mentioning a report published by The New York Times on the subject, and then added this to the $400 million lawsuit he filed last January.

In the lawsuit, Baldoni named Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and her publicist Leslie Sloane, citing the report cited in legal documents. He was expelled from the court last June.

All parties denied the accusations against them.