Blake Lively Abandons Claims Against Justin Baldoni of Infliction of Emotional Distress

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Blake Lively is trying to retract her allegations of intentional emotional distress and negligent infliction of emotional distress against Justin Baldoni. This decision comes following Baldoni’s legal team requesting access to Lively’s medical records as part of their defense against her accusation that she experienced severe emotional pain, humiliation, embarrassment, belittlement, frustration, and mental anguish due to Baldoni. In court documents filed on Monday by Baldoni’s lawyers, they aim to force Lively to provide a HIPAA release for access to therapy notes and other pertinent information.

According to today’s filing, Ms. Lively’s lawyer has advised that she is no longer pursuing her emotional distress claims as stated in a recent letter. However, Ms. Lively has declined the Wayfarer Parties’ request for this withdrawal to be final (with prejudice). Instead, she only wants to withdraw her claims without any limitations (without prejudice). This means that:

– Ms. Lively is unwilling to provide the necessary information and documents to prove or disprove her emotional distress or the involvement of the Wayfarer Parties.
– She intends to keep the option open to refile her emotional distress claims at an unspecified time, either in this court or another, after the deadline for discovery has passed.

The court must now determine whether to force Lively to disclose her mental health information, which she has been trying to keep private, or dismiss the two claims, possibly allowing for their re-filing later. Typically in cases involving physical or emotional harm, the defense is granted access to the plaintiff’s medical records to better understand the origins and extent of the claimed distress. It’s not uncommon for this information to be unwelcome, but it’s a routine part of the discovery process. What stands out here is that Lively seems to be dropping the claims despite being aware that her medical records would likely become public during the lawsuit.

The filing, sent to Judge Liman at the U.S. District Court Southern District of New York and signed by attorney Kevin Fritz on behalf of Baldoni, offers a glimpse into a back-and-forth between lawyers for both parties. It goes on to say: “Ms. Lively can’t have it both ways. If Ms. Livery decides to withdraw her groundless IED claims, the Wayfarer Parties are entitled to a dismissal that is final (with prejudice) to prevent these claims from being refiled. If Ms. Livery is not willing to agree to the dismissal of her IED claims with prejudice, then the Wayfarer Parties will carry on defending against them, and she must provide her medical information and documents as stated here.

In Lively’s lawsuit against Baldoni, filed in federal court last December following his own defamation suit against the New York Times over an article detailing events on set and before the release of their 2024 film, a domestic violence drama that was a box-office success with $351 million earnings worldwide from a budget of $25 million – Lively asserts that she faced sexual harassment by Baldoni and producer Jamey Heath, and when she raised concerns, she was targeted in a smear campaign orchestrated through his associates. Contrarily, Baldoni alleges that Lively attempted to extort him and subsequently slandered him, and he is now suing her and her husband Ryan Reynolds for $400 million.

According to the recent filing, Ms. Lively claimed that she experienced both physical and emotional harm. This means her overall health, both physically and mentally, is now in question. As a result, she must provide relevant information and documents, including psychiatric records, because by making this claim, she has effectively forfeited any confidentiality between doctor and patient.

The complex sequence of events in this ongoing tale, involving six interconnected legal disputes, has seen a rapid progression in court. Notably, Baldoni himself is both a plaintiff and defendant, having filed a lawsuit against his former publicist Stephanie Jones, who he alleges disclosed private text messages that ignited the series of events.

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2025-06-03 01:46