Blake Lively finds herself entangled in yet another legal tangle amidst her ongoing battle over "It Ends With Us" with costar Justin Baldoni, this time being hauled into court by a publicist named in her complaint to the California Civil Rights Department. On Tuesday, February 4th, Jed Wallace, of the Texas-based crisis-management firm Street Relations, Inc., initiated a defamation suit against the 37-year-old actress. This lawsuit follows Lively's January 21st petition seeking a deposition from Wallace, which was subsequently withdrawn on Tuesday, as per Wallace's legal filing.
In Lively's December civil rights complaint, her legal representatives accused Wallace of being enlisted by Baldoni's PR team to participate in an alleged smear campaign, asserting that he "mobilized a digital militia spanning from New York to Los Angeles to create, distribute, and promote seemingly genuine content across social media platforms and internet forums."
Wallace's lawyers, in their counter-suit, contend that Lively's recent petition "admitted her lack of evidence to substantiate her allegations against Wallace and Street, which had previously garnered global headlines." They further assert that her move to seek a deposition was seemingly motivated by the threat of sanctions from one of the plaintiffs' attorneys.
Responding to the lawsuit, Lively's legal team issued a statement, branding it as "yet another nine-figure lawsuit aimed at silencing Ms. Lively for speaking out against sexual harassment and retaliation." They emphasized, "This is not a publicity stunt but a transparent act of retaliation against the allegations raised in Ms. Lively's sexual harassment and retaliation complaint filed with the California Civil Rights Department." They added, "While we are confident this lawsuit will be dismissed, we welcome the emergence of Mr. Wallace from the shadows and look forward to holding him accountable in federal court."
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wallace and his company are seeking a minimum of $7 million in damages, coupled with a court order clearing him of any harassment or retaliation against the actress.
Wallace's Tuesday filing reads, "The factual statements, either explicit or implied, in the precursor and CRD complaint concerning the plaintiffs are false, defamatory, and made either negligently or with 'actual malice.' These statements have caused millions of dollars in reputational harm, encompassing both general and special damages, including emotional distress (to Wallace), actual damages, and substantial and projected business losses (to Wallace and Street) exceeding $1 million."
Chip Babcock, one of Wallace's attorneys from the Texas law firm Jackson Walker, LLP, stated, "Mr. Wallace, a private individual, has never met or communicated with Ms. Lively. He has never engaged in any smear campaign against her. The decision to file this lawsuit was taken after Ms. Lively not only initiated legal proceedings against him in Texas but also indicated her intention to name him in another lawsuit."
The ongoing legal saga between Lively and 41-year-old Baldoni commenced in December 2024 when the actress filed a sexual harassment complaint against him, alleging misconduct during the film's production and a retaliatory smear campaign aimed at ruining her reputation, which he has steadfastly denied.
Baldoni retaliated against Lively's initial allegations on January 16th with a $400 million lawsuit against her, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and their publicist Leslie Sloane, accusing them of extortion, defamation, and more.
For the first time, lawyers from both sides clashed in court during a pre-trial conference on Monday, February 3rd, where the judge cautioned them against litigating the case in the public domain. The trial between Baldoni and Lively is currently slated for March 2026.
