Blake Lively asks judge to block Justin Baldoni from obtaining Taylor Swift messages
Blake Lively filed a motion asking the court for a 'protective order' to block Justin Baldoni from accessing her text messages with Taylor Swift as their nasty legal battle rages on.
The 'Age of Adeline' star filed documents to New York judge Lewis J. Liman, who has presided over the case thus far, on Friday, alleging that the director and his team's pursuit of her exchanges with the pop star are part of their long-planned 'tactic' to leverage the singer and her fans.
According to documents obtained by Page Six, Lively claims that her communication with Swift is 'not central' to her complaint against the actor and are 'irrelevant' to his Wayfarer production company's claims.
'Throughout litigation, and particularly over the past month, the Wayfarer Parties have repeatedlyused Ms. Swift's name as part of their media strategy,' the letter reads.
As Baldoni's team dropped their probe into Swift, 35, and Lively's friendship, claiming that they obtained the details they wanted, Lively's team claimed to the judge that a continued pursuit would be 'duplicative, cumulative, and unnecessary.'
'Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer parties are still demanding access to Taylor Swift's private communications—despite having already subpoenaed and then withdrawn that subpoena after they 'got all they needed,'' a spokesperson for Lively told Page Six of the new legal move.
'As reflected in today's filing, their intent to drag Taylor Swift into this was evident as far back as August 2024, when the crisis PR firm led by Melissa Nathan included her in their 'Scenario Planning' document and flagged the 'TS fanbase' as something to take 'extremely seriously.''
The statement closed: 'The ongoing attempts to once again try and use the world's biggest star as a PR tactic in this matter reflects a public unraveling of epic proportions—and serves only to distract from the fact that Justin Baldoni's lawsuits against Ms. Lively, Ryan Reynolds, their publicist, and the New York Times have been entirely dismissed.'
Reps for Baldoni and Swift did not immediately respond to Page Six's requests for comment.
The director, 41, initially dragged the pop star into his messy legal feud with Lively in January when he launched his $400 million countersuit against the 'A Simple Favor' star and her husband, Ryan Reynolds.
His attorney Bryan Freedman alleged that Swift was at the scene of a significant meeting between the two co-stars.
He also claimed that the 'Gossip Girl' alum, 37, weaponized her friendship with Swift in an attempt to take control of their film set.
After hitting the 'Bad Blood' hitmaker with an official subpoena in May, Baldoni and his legal team dropped it and their probe into her friendship with the actress later that month.
At the time, Lively's rep responded to the update, saying, 'We are pleased that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties have withdrawn their harassing subpoenas to Taylor Swift and her law firm.'
'We supported the efforts of Taylor's team to quash these inappropriate subpoenas directed to her counsel and we will continue to stand up for any third party who is unjustly harassed or threatened in the process.'
In a shocking legal twist, the director's countersuit against the famous couple was thrown out by the New York judge on Monday — along with his $250 million libel lawsuit against the New York Times.
In his reasoning, the magistrate wrote that the 'Jane the Virgin' alum and his Wayfarer Studios production company 'have not alleged that Lively is responsible for any statements other than the statements in her [California Civil Rights Department] complaint, which are privileged.'
Baldoni's legal team has until June 23 to amend their claims for breach of implied covenant (suggesting that terms agreed upon in their legal agreement were violated) and tortious interference with contract (intentionally disrupting the relationship or contractual agreement between parties, potentially leading to significant financial damages and reputational harm).
Despite the recent update, there's still a long way to go for the bitter feud. The trial date for Lively and Baldoni's case has been set for March 2026.
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New York Post
37 minutes ago
- New York Post
Blake Lively loses bid to hide private texts with Taylor Swift in Justin Baldoni legal case
It's a cruel summer. Justin Baldoni can officially gain access to Blake Lively and Taylor Swift's private messages that pertain to 'It Ends With Us,' US District Judge Lewis Liman ruled on Wednesday. In court documents obtained by The Post, Judge Liman denied Lively's motion for a protective order to hide her messages with Swift, 35, from Baldoni, 41, amidst their ongoing legal battle. 11 Taylor Swift and Blake Lively at the 2024 Super Bowl. Getty Images 11 Justin Baldoni attends Variety Faith And Spirituality In Entertainment Honors in Beverly Hills in Dec. 2024. Variety via Getty Images The ruling stated that since Lively, 37, 'has represented that Swift had knowledge of complaints or discussions about the working environment on the film,' the requests for her messages with the 'Style' singer 'are reasonably tailored to discover information that would prove or disprove Lively's harassment and retaliation claims.' But Judge Liman did note that the messages must be related to the 2024 film or Lively and Baldoni's legal case. 11 Blake Lively, Taylor Swift seen in SoHo in September 2023. GC Images He also stated that the parties' pre-exesting protective order will cover the messages to prevent them from leaking to the press. According to the ruling, Lively's lawyers made a proposal to Baldoni's team in which she would hand over all documents related to the case, except her messages with Swift, in return that Baldoni produced 'all video footage related to the film and full, unredacted versions of communication' listed in Baldoni's complaint. Baldoni's team ultimately declined Lively's bargain. 11 Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in 'It Ends With Us.' AP Lively's spokesperson told The Post in a statement: 'The Court outright denied the Wayfarer Parties' motion to compel documents from Ms. Lively, who has produced far more documents in this case than the Wayfarer Parties combined. Further, the Court's protective order ruling rests on the Wayfarer Parties' admission that they received nothing from Taylor Swift, which is exactly the opposite of what their 'insider' claimed two weeks ago.' 11 Blake Lively at the 'Another Simple Favor' screening in New York on April 27. WireImage 'As for the rest, Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer parties demanded access to Taylor Swift's private communications—despite having already subpoenaed and then withdrawn that subpoena,' the statement continued. 'Baldoni's desire to drag Taylor Swift into this has been constant dating back to August 2024, when the crisis PR firm led by Melissa Nathan included her in their 'Scenario Planning' document, referred to her as a bully, and called for a strategy to influence the 'TS fanbase.' We will continue to call out Baldoni's relentless efforts to exploit Ms Swift's popularity, which from day one has been nothing more than a distraction from the serious sexual harassment and retaliation accusations he and the Wayfarer parties are facing.' 11 Justin Baldoni at the 'It Ends With Us' premiere in New York in Aug. 2024. Adela Loconte/Shutterstock The Post has reached out to Baldoni's attorney and Swift's rep for comment. In May, Swift was subpoenaed as a witness by Baldoni's legal team in the never-ending 'It Ends With Us' legal nightmare. But in a shocking move by Baldoni's legal team, they dropped the subpoena on May 22 after a representative for Swift denied she had any involvement in the drama. 11 Blake Lively and Taylor Swift seen in New York City in Dec. 2023. GC Images 'Taylor Swift never set foot on the set of this movie, she was not involved in any casting or creative decisions, she did not score the film, she never saw an edit or made any notes on the film, she did not even see 'It Ends With Us' until weeks after its public release, and was traveling around the globe during 2023 and 2024 headlining the biggest tour in history,' the rep told The Post in response to the original subpoena. The 'Lover' singer was mentioned in Baldoni's $400 million countersuit against the actress and her husband Ryan Reynolds, in which Baldoni accused Lively of calling Swift and Reynolds, 48, her 'dragons' and referring to herself as Khaleesi from 'Game of Thrones' in an alleged text conversation. 11 Hugh Jackman, Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively and Taylor Swift. Hugh Jackman/Instagram Baldoni further alleged that Swift was present for a pivotal meeting he had with Lively at her and Reynolds' NYC penthouse about rewriting the infamous 'It Ends With Us' rooftop scene. Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, later issued a letter to Judge Liman, claiming he was told by an anonymous source that Lively's lead lawyer, Michael Gottlieb, allegedly threatened to release Swift's text messages if the 'You Need to Calm Down' hitmaker didn't publicly support Blake. 11 Justin Baldoni at an event in Los Angeles in December 2024. Variety via Getty Images Gottlieb denied the allegations — and the judge granted Lively's motion to strike the letter, calling Freedman's filing 'improper' and 'irrelevant' in the order obtained by The Post. Lively and Swift's friendship has allegedly suffered due to the legal case. 'Even though Taylor has totally cut ties with her, Blake hasn't with Taylor,' a source recently told the Daily Mail, claiming that Lively has been 'ignoring' her former bestie, who is the godmother of Lively and Reynolds' three daughters. 11 Taylor Swift and Blake Lively at the 2024 Super Bowl. Getty Images The source further claimed that Swift is icing out Lively because she feels 'betrayed' and 'exploited' by the 'Gossip Girl' alum. The legal battle began when Lively sued Baldoni in December 2024, claiming he sexually harassed her while filming 'It Ends With Us.' She also accused him of spearheading a smear campaign against her and of an intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress. 11 Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively filming 'It Ends With Us' in New Jersey in Jan. 2024. Christopher Peterson / Baldoni, who denied the allegations, countersued Lively and Reynolds in January, alleging extortion and defamation. But the $400 million lawsuit was dismissed by Judge Liman earlier this month, as was Baldoni's $250 million defamation lawsuit against the New York Times. The legal case is still scheduled to go to trial in March 2026.
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
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Blake Lively's Motion To Keep Taylor Swift Messages Private Denied — Report
Blake Lively and 's text messages have reportedly become accessible to Justin Baldoni in the legal battle. On Wednesday, a judge denied Lively's motion for a 'protective order' to block her 'It Ends With Us' co-star's attempts to seek their communications. The latest update drags Swift back into the case weeks after Baldoni's team dropped their subpoenas to the pop star and her lawyers at Venable, claiming they got what they needed. However, new documents stated otherwise. Judge Lewis J. Liman denied last week's motion to keep Blake Lively and Taylor Swift's text messages private. PEOPLE acquired court documents confirming that the latest update comes as a blow to Lively, who had moved to block her legal adversary from securing her and Swift's communications. In her filings from last Friday, she accused Baldoni and his legal team of strategically devising the 'tactic' to distract from his lawsuit dismissal. The new court documents revealed that although Baldoni and his team never received the texts after dropping their subpoena to Swift. They had continued pushing for these exchanges and even argued their relevance in a response filing, claiming these could prove crucial in disproving the sexual harassment and smear campaign allegations. They also blamed Lively for dragging the singer into the case by identifying the singer as someone with knowledge of what she experienced. Judge Lewis J. Liman called Justin Baldoni's request in the legal battle, seeking Blake Lively and Taylor Swift's text messages, 'reasonably tailored.' Liman justified his ruling, stating, 'Lively has represented that Swift had knowledge of complaints or discussions about the working environment on the film.' The judge further added that these exchanges coming to light could 'prove or disprove' the actor's 'harassment and retaliation claims.' The update came weeks after Judge Liman dismissed Baldoni's $400 million countersuit against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. In what looked like a legal victory, the actor-director can now gain access to the longtime friends' private chats, but only about the 'It Ends With Us' film. Furthermore, the 'Gossip Girl' alum's representative released a statement, slamming his 'desire to drag' the Grammy winner into their feud. The post Blake Lively's Motion To Keep Taylor Swift Messages Private Denied — Report appeared first on Reality Tea.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Blake Lively Wants No Mention of Taylor Swift in Baldoni Case — Report
Blake Lively reportedly filed a motion to prevent Justin Baldoni from using her and Taylor Swift's text messages in the ongoing case. Page Six reviewed the court documents Lively filed with New York judge Lewis J. Liman to block her 'It Ends With Us' co-star and his team's 'media strategy' to drag the pop icon into their bitter legal dispute. The actor called it Baldoni's 'tactic' to exploit Swift and her massive fan base to distract attention from the issue and her sexual harassment allegations. Blake Lively is seemingly leaving no stone unturned to block Justin Baldoni's team from using Taylor Swift's text messages in the case. Page Six reported that on Friday, she filed a motion seeking a 'protective order' to restrict the contesting party from obtaining her and Swift's exchanges. In her filing, Lively accused her co-star and his legal team of strategically devising the 'tactic' of using their communications to take advantage of the singer and her fans. Baldoni first named-dropped Swift in his $400 million countersuit against the 'Gossip Girl' alum and her husband, Ryan Reynolds. Earlier this year, a New York judge dismissed his multimillion-dollar suit against the couple after he dropped the subpoenas to the Grammy winner and her legal team. His team then claimed they dropped the inquiry into her and Lively's friendship after obtaining what they needed. In her recent motion, Blake Lively argued that her and Taylor Swift's text messages were 'not central' to her case against Baldoni. She further asserted these communications were 'irrelevant' to her legal adversary and Wayfarer's claims. Lively's letter to the judge accused them of 'repeatedly' using Swift's name 'as part of their media strategy.' Her team also noted that a continued pursuit would be 'duplicative, cumulative, and unnecessary.' Later, Lively's representative released a statement calling out Baldoni and the Wayfarer parties. It highlighted their repeated tries to her and Swift's 'private communications,' despite their subpoena to the singer, which they withdrew, claiming they 'got all they needed.' Explaining the purpose of their latest legal move, the statement called the 'ongoing attempts' a 'PR tactic' to divert attention from Baldoni's lawsuit dismissal. The post Blake Lively Wants No Mention of Taylor Swift in Baldoni Case — Report appeared first on Reality Tea.
