Following months of intense courtroom filings and public scrutiny surrounding the film adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us, Blake Lively has been awarded just over $400,000 in attorneys’ fees and legal costs from director Justin Baldoni and his partners at Wayfarer Studios.
The ruling comes after Lively’s legal team filed a motion in June seeking $8,035,040.88 in fees and expenses following the dismissal of Baldoni’s retaliatory $400 million countersuit. According to official court documents obtained on August 26, the presiding judge ultimately awarded $363,245.40 in attorneys’ fees alongside $44,206.35 in costs, totaling $407,451.75.
In a joint statement responding to the ruling, Lively’s attorneys, Esra Hudson and Michael Gottlieb, emphasized that the decision marks a historic milestone for legal precedent under California Civil Code section 47.1—a statute designed to protect good-faith communications regarding sexual harassment, assault, or discrimination from retaliatory defamation suits:
“Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties lost their meritless retaliatory $400 million lawsuit, which two different courts held was designed to stifle public criticism and silence Blake Lively and others. This first-ever award of fees and costs under this California law is historic, and demonstrates that there are real consequences of bringing retaliatory lawsuits. As we have said from day one, Blake Lively’s case was never about money – it was about accountability.”
“Blake Lively’s lawsuit exposed an industry of secret online smear campaigns that largely target women, and unsurprisingly involve the same players,” her counsel continued. “She lifted the curtain for other victims, and set the precedent for others to come forward and expose similar conduct. This result demonstrates that the legal system is not as easily manipulated as social media, and still functions as a force for accountability.”
Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, offered a contrasting perspective on the judge’s determination to award five percent of the initial $8 million request:
“Section 47.1 is not a perfect law, but it is an important one designed to protect real survivors, who deserve to see this law tested and perfected in the court of law. Notwithstanding the fact that the law was applied in ways it was never intended for, my clients intentionally left Section 47.1 to be ruled on without any appellate rights to appeal as part of the settlement agreement, to prevent either party from overturning the law.”
“Today’s ruling speaks for itself,” Freedman added, noting that the judge “clearly considered the ‘outrageous and unreasonable’ $8 million plus demand and, in rejecting it, awarded only 5 percent of the amount sought in legal fees and costs. The ruling is a significant victory for my clients and sends a clear message that, no matter how powerful you may be, the courtroom is not a place to take advantage of the law for your own personal gain.”
The legal saga first began in December 2024 when Lively filed a formal complaint alleging sexual harassment against her co-star and director during production, later expanding her lawsuit to allege that Wayfarer Studios orchestrated a coordinated online smear campaign against her. Baldoni denied all allegations and filed a $400 million countersuit, which was permanently dismissed by a judge in June 2025. By April 2026, the court dismissed 10 of the 13 claims in Lively’s complaint, prompting both parties to reach a confidential settlement in May 2026.
