Blake Lively files for $8.04 million in legal fees from Justin Baldoni after settling harassment suit

The fee request

Lively's lawyers filed the motion late Monday night in Manhattan federal court, seeking a combined $8,035,040.88. The sum comprises $7,495,526.87 in attorneys' fees and $539,514.01 in other costs, including legal research, travel and meals. Lead attorney Michael Gottlieb disclosed an hourly rate of $2,187 for his own work, a discount from his standard $2,795. The filing notes that all time billed to Lively carried 10 to 15 percent discounts from the firms' standard rates.

Background of the dispute

The dispute began on the set of the 2024 film 'It Ends With Us', in which Lively and Baldoni co-starred and Baldoni directed. In December 2024 Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment and of orchestrating a campaign to damage her reputation. Baldoni countered in January 2025 with a $400 million defamation suit against Lively and her husband Ryan Reynolds, a case the judge dismissed in June 2025. The judge later dismissed most of Lively's own claims, including the harassment allegations, leaving only a handful of counts related to breach of contract and retaliation before the parties settled in May 2026.

Settlement and the fee ruling

Lively received no monetary payout in the May settlement, but she retained the right to pursue legal fees incurred while defending against Baldoni's dismissed countersuit. In early June 2026, U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman ruled that Lively was entitled to seek reimbursement under a 2023 California law designed to protect sexual harassment accusers from retaliatory defamation lawsuits. The judge also denied Lively's request for additional damages.

Lawyers' arguments and the threat allegation

In a 15-page memorandum, Lively's legal team accused Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios of waging 'scorched-earth litigation tactics designed to drain Lively's resources'. They cited a pre-litigation threat by billionaire Wayfarer financier Steve Sarowitz, who allegedly told Lively that if she ever crossed a line he would use his fortune to destroy her and her husband.

“This gross abuse of the legal system was not meant to win in court. Its aim was to retaliate against Lively by falsely branding her a liar, intimidating witnesses and the media, and discouraging others from speaking out.”

Gottlieb and co-counsel Esra Hudson said in a statement that the ruling allowing the fee motion sends a broader signal.

“Thanks to this landmark decision, those considering using a lawsuit as a weapon of intimidation have been put on notice that there are consequences for doing so.”

What comes next

Baldoni's legal team, led by Bryan Freedman, has until July 13 to respond to the fee request. Freedman earlier argued that Lively 'was only awarded limited attorney fees for a single claim as part of a case that lasted only a matter of months'. The judge will determine the final amount after that deadline. The $8 million demand represents only a fraction of Lively's total legal costs across 18 months of litigation, as the award covers only expenses related to Baldoni's dismissed countersuit, not her own affirmative case.