Movies

Blake Lively WINS bid to choose deposition location in Justin Baldoni legal battle

BBG News

The setting for Blake Lively’s deposition in her sexual harassment lawsuit against Justin Baldoni will be determined by her preference.

On Monday, a judge allowed the actress, aged 37, to choose the location for her deposition, as reported by Variety. This decision came after her legal team argued that Baldoni’s lawyers were attempting to make the hearing a public spectacle.

The actress from the show “Gossip Girl” has been scheduled for a court testimony in New York City this coming Thursday as part of her ongoing legal dispute with Baldoni, who both directed and starred alongside her in “It Ends With Us.

In simpler terms, Baldoni’s legal team proposed that the deposition should take place at the Park Avenue offices of Meister Seelig & Fein, a law firm involved in his case.

Last week, Lively’s team raised objections to the proposed location, expressing concerns that it might lead to an unexpected encounter with the media and an overwhelming presence of paparazzi, potentially causing a media ambush and making Lively feel swarmed as she entered and exited the building.

As a devoted admirer, I couldn’t help but push back on her assertion when she tried to leverage her fame for an advantage in our discussions. In my opinion, Baldoni rightly accused her of exploiting her celebrity status to gain an edge.

Lively’s group expressed worries that Baldoni might bring social media personalities to the private hearing, a situation they found concerning.

On Monday, Judge Lewis Liman allowed that the deposition could take place elsewhere (the exact location is not disclosed in the publicly available court document).

Lawyers representing Lively have requested Baldoni’s team to supply a roster of all the expected participants as well.

As your trusted lifestyle guide, I’ve made it my priority to ensure all details are in order. I’ve requested my team to prepare and deliver the necessary list to you no later than Tuesday at noon.

In my role as a lifestyle expert, I would rephrase that sentence like this: As part of the court proceedings, I was tasked with ensuring that printing and copying resources were made available to Baldoni’s legal team, following the judge’s instructions regarding Lively’s team’s responsibilities.

During a playful moment, attorney Bryan Freedman of Baldoni earlier suggested to TMZ that Lively’s deposition could be broadcast live to a crowd at Madison Square Garden.

A potential idea proposed by Freedman, initially dismissed by Lively’s legal representative as a stunt for attracting attention, entailed generating revenue from ticket sales for an event and subsequently contributing those funds to aid victims of domestic violence.

Lively’s group contended that if the deposition took place where Freedman wanted, his comments suggested he might not maintain a professional atmosphere.

Mitchell Schuster, one of Baldoni’s legal representatives, considered the worry unnecessary, stating that conducting the deposition elsewhere would create an inconvenience for his team.

The two parties are gearing up for a legal confrontation following their disagreement during the production of It Ends With Us last year.

Following Lively’s assertion that Baldoni’s team intended to turn the deposition into a public show, the filmmaker countered by stating, through his attorney, that Lively had failed to provide evidence to back up her claim.

Based on TMZ’s report, Baldoni’s legal team feels that conducting the deposition at Lively’s attorney’s office may work against them due to potential unfavorable circumstances.

Justin’s legal representative mentioned that they might require time to review numerous notes (approximately 500 pages) and would prefer a private conference room for the discussions.

In their court filing, Baldoni’s legal team stated, ‘While Reese Lively may have leveraged her fame to take charge of the film, which is central to our disagreement, her attorney’s outburst has no business in this courtroom. Like all parties involved, Ms. Lively must abide by the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.’

The involved parties have decided to hold the deposition on July 17th. However, recent court documents suggest that there’s been a disagreement between the parties regarding the specifics of the discovery process.

In the emails exchanged by Lively and Baldoni’s legal representatives that have been documented, Lively’s lawyers claimed that Baldoni’s team delayed sending hard drives containing evidence. This delay would complicate the examination of any documents or videos that the defendants might refer to while cross-examining Lively.

In the recent submissions, her legal representatives voiced apprehension that Baldoni might attempt to present her in public view for photographers and onlookers if the deposition occurs at a less private venue.

According to what was shared with TMZ by Lively’s spokesperson, Lively is excited for her upcoming deposition next week, and she expects it to adhere to the same guidelines as any other witness involved in this case.

As an ardent admirer putting it in my own words: “Justin Baldoni’s legal team has been relentless in turning this private issue into a public drama at every opportunity, even suggesting the sale of tickets for a live televised deposition at Madison Square Garden. This isn’t about creating a spectacle; it’s about a grave matter of sexual harassment and retaliation that demands the attention and respect it deserves.

Living up to her lively nature, Scarlett Byrne, who was previously involved in Baldoni’s $400 million defamation and extortion lawsuit with husband Ryan Reynolds, is likely to testify when the trial starts in New York City, scheduled for March 2026.

Close confidants of Lively have revealed to a media outlet that she is ready to field tough questions during her deposition, and it’s unlikely that Reynolds will be present.

In a legal complaint, Lively alleges that Baldoni engaged in sexual harassment. Meanwhile, Baldoni countersued Lively, her husband Ryan, and their publicist Leslie Sloane for defamation and extortion in a lawsuit seeking $400 million. However, the extortion charge was dropped on Monday.

In response to the claims made by Lively, Baldoni has refuted them. Meanwhile, Lively, Reynolds, and Sloane have all dismissed the accusations leveled against Baldoni in court.

In June, a judge declined to issue a protective order requested by Lively’s legal team, which aimed to prevent her text conversations with Taylor Swift from being used as evidence in the ongoing case.

Baldoni’s group issued a summons to Lively, requesting copies of text messages, emails, and any other forms of communication she may have exchanged with Swift.

Afterwards, they were granted access to thoroughly review all messages connected to “It Ends With Us”, as all relevant communications will be examined.

In an awkward conversation, Lively seemed to liken herself to the Game of Thrones persona Daenerys (Khaleesi), while referring to Swift as one of her “dragon companions.

In another part of Baldoni’s documentation, it’s stated that Swift attended a gathering called by Lively at her high-rise apartment in New York, where the adjustments for the It Ends With Us script were under discussion.

According to reliable sources, Swift was reportedly unaware of the gathering and just happened to show up when things were already in progress.

Reportedly, the incident allegedly made Swift feel taken advantage of, as she is the godmother to Lively’s three children and has been friends with her for a decade.

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2025-07-15 02:49

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