A judge has ordered American actor and director Justin Baldoni to pay the legal fees of actress Blake Lively following the dismissal of a $400 million countersuit last year, per vulture.com.
The court is yet to determine the exact financial compensation Lively will receive, following a ruling under Civil Code Section 47.1. Both parties had previously agreed to waive any future appeals following their initial settlement.
Lively’s attorneys, Esra Hudson and Michael Gottlieb, stated that the ruling confirmed their client brought her claims in good faith, without malice, establishing her as the prevailing defendant under the code.
Conversely, Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, minimised the decision, stating that Lively was only awarded limited fees for a single claim within a case that lasted a few months. Freedman maintained that innocent reputations had been unfairly tarnished during the process, asserting that there was no evidence of sexual harassment, retaliation or a smear campaign.
The legal dispute follows a highly publicised professional fallout between the two Hollywood stars, who recently collaborated on the high-profile film adaptation It Ends with Us.
