Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni's Legal Teams Reject Offers of Mediation, Says Any Talks of Settlement Would Be 'Premature'
The legal teams representing Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have rejected offers of mediation, adding that any settlement talks now would be "premature."
In a joint letter filed Thursday in New York federal court, attorneys for both sides said they have no interest in seeking a mediator or potentially negotiating a settlement between the "It Ends With Us" co-stars, even after the court ordered them to begin the dispute-resolution process in January.
Lively and Baldoni's legal teams also asked US District Judge Lewis Liman to exempt them from mediation, indicating that the case may go to trial. Both parties argued that any settlement at this stage would be "premature" and "inappropriate," per the Business Insider.
This rare moment of agreement between Lively and Baldoni's legal team comes amid an intensifying legal battle. It also comes after Lively's team issued subpoenas for Baldoni's phone records to expose the "people, tactics, and methods" he allegedly used to damage the actress' reputation. Specifically, the subpoena seeks all calls, texts, data logs, and real-time location information for the past 2.5 years.
The subpoenas have been sent to AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile for phone records and Cloudflare, Inc. and AOL for internet records, according to PEOPLE.
The legal battle began after Lively filed a lawsuit on New Year's Eve, naming Baldoni's film studio, his fellow producers, and his publicists for launching a smear campaign against her after she accused the actor of sexual harassment.
In response, Baldoni filed a $400 million lawsuit against Lively, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist, alleging defamation, extortion, and invasion of privacy.
The legal drama has since escalated, with Baldoni's lawyer launching a website that presents evidence to support his client's accusations. The website includes a timeline of text exchanges and claims that Lively's allegations are false.
The case has also spawned additional lawsuits, including Baldoni suing The New York Times for $250 million and a crisis management consultant suing Lively for $7 million in Texas.
The trial is currently scheduled for March 9, 2026. However, Judge Liman has threatened to move up the trial start date due to excessive media coverage.
