A federal judge in New York awarded Blake Lively $407,000 in legal fees and costs on August 26, 2026, after she successfully defended against a defamation lawsuit brought by her It Ends With Us
co-star Justin Baldoni. The payout represents just five percent of the $8.04 million the actress originally sought.
The courtroom decision brings a definitive financial close to an 18-month legal war. While Lively and Baldoni settled their broad litigation in May without any money changing hands for the underlying sexual harassment claims, the matter of legal fee recovery remained the final loose end before U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman in Manhattan.
Judge Lewis Liman Rulings on Unreasonable Hours and Defamation Defense
Liman’s ruling drew a sharp boundary around what expenses could be recouped under a 2023 California law designed to protect sexual harassment accusers from retaliatory defamation lawsuits. The court ordered the clerk to enter judgment for Lively in the amount of $363,245.40 in attorneys’ fees and $44,206.35 in costs, totaling about $407,000.
That figure fell drastically short of the $7,495,526.87 in fees and $539,514.01 in costs that Lively had accumulated in fighting Baldoni’s countersuit. Liman observed that while the case was extremely well-litigated
and billing rates occasionally exceeding $2,000 per hour were not unreasonable
given the complexity and high stakes, the overall demand suffered from major deficiencies.
“The number of hours for which Lively seeks reimbursement is unreasonable.”
Judge Lewis Liman, U.S. District Judge
According to court filings, the judge rejected requests to cover media relations expenses, ruling that press coverage was not integral to defending against the defamation claim.
Dueling Legal Teams Clash Over Precedent and Accountability
Both sides claimed victory in the wake of the decision, pointing to starkly different aspects of the verdict to justify their positions. Lively’s legal representatives, Esra Hudson and Michael Gottlieb, issued a joint statement framing the judgment as a historic win for plaintiffs standing up against retaliatory litigation.
“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.”
Esra Hudson and Michael Gottlieb, Lively’s legal team
Lively’s attorneys added that the litigation exposed an industry of secret online smear campaigns that largely target women
and set a vital precedent. By contrast, Bryan Freedman, the attorney representing Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios, emphasized the massive reduction from the initial eight-million-dollar demand.
“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.”
Bryan Freedman, lawyer for Justin Baldoni
The Long Road from On-Set Feud to Final Settlement
In December 2024, Lively filed a formal complaint with the California Civil Rights Department and a lawsuit alleging sexual harassment and retaliation. Baldoni fired back the following month with a defamation lawsuit against Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and The New York Times over its coverage.
While Judge Liman dismissed Baldoni’s defamation lawsuit against Lively and the newspaper in October 2025, he also dismissed Lively’s harassment claims in May 2026, leaving only retaliation and defense issues standing. Both parties ultimately agreed to settle their broad dispute in May
just weeks before a scheduled trial, with both sides agreeing in advance not to appeal Liman’s forthcoming decision on legal fees.
