Justin Baldoni’s Lawyer Addresses Possible Blake Lively Settlement

Justin Baldoni’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, is responding to predictions that his client’s legal battle with Blake Lively will be settled before trial.

While appearing on the March 12 episode of “The Town” podcast, host and former lawyer Matthew Belloni asked Freedman how long the case can go on for.

“I do not believe there will be a trial in this case,” Belloni, who is a founding member of the Puck newsletter, predicted. “I just think that the potential for the circus and the damage to both sides here will ultimately win out and you guys will settle. So if that’s the case, why not just settle now? What is the number? What would it require for this to go away?”

From Freedman’s perspective, he’s not sure if “circus” is the right word to describe the case.

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“You keep referring to it as a circus and I get it. You see a lot of cases. You see a lot of things, but the reality is this is not a circus when you go through an experience like this,” he explained. “I’ve represented a lot of people in the worst moments of their career, the worst moments of their life. Justin has been destroyed by this.”

Freedman said the allegations are “a really serious thing” and it’s important that the truth is revealed.

“In this day and age, the only way that you can truly get back is to prove your innocence and that’s what we’re actively working to [do],” he shared. “That may only be able to be done in a courtroom.”

Baldoni’s life has been put under the microscope ever since Lively, 37, filed a legal complaint against him in December 2024, accusing him of sexual harassment during the filming of their movie It Ends With Us. The actress also claimed that Baldoni, 41, attempted to launch a smear campaign against her.

Baldoni denied Lively’s allegations and filed his own lawsuit against the Gossip Girl alum, her publicist, and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, in January.

He is seeking $400 million in damages after accusing the trio of civil extortion, defamation, false light invasion of privacy and other claims. Lively and Reynolds, 48, deny his claims while Lively’s publicist has asked to be removed from Baldoni’s lawsuit.

Before Baldoni and Lively’s trial is expected to begin in May 2026, Baldoni and his team launched a website with the URL of “thelawsuitinfo.com” to allow the public to access an “Amended Complaint” and “Timeline of Relevant Events.”

“The website is actually a culmination of public pleadings that are publicly accessible and had been filed and they are easily accessible,” Freedman shared with Belloni. “It’s a place where you can find things.”

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Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images Director Justin Baldoni’s religious beliefs are reportedly playing a part in his ongoing legal drama with It Ends With Us costar Blake Lively. Baldoni, 41, is a member of the Baha’i faith, a religion founded in the 19th century that focuses on the unity of humanity and the elimination of prejudice. Both […]

Freedman supported the website after The New York Times broke the news that Lively was planning to sue Baldoni.

“The minute The New York Times story came out, Justin was done for all intents and purposes,” Freedman claimed. “The court of public opinion was against him. There was no side that he had in this. There were no facts that were on his side. … It was really important to come out with real, true facts.”

The New York Times has since stood by its reporting of the Lively and Baldoni case. The publication has also filed a motion to dismiss Baldoni’s claims against them.