Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds Fear ‘Irreparable Harm’ If Justin Baldoni Does This 1 Thing in Their Legal Battle
A virtual hearing for Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni‘s case commenced on March 6. While the two actors, along with Lively’s husband Ryan Reynolds, were not in attendance, both sides argued about confidentiality amid the court case.
The It Ends With Us director, his company Wayfarer Studios, producer Jamey Heath and his publicists Melissa Nathan and Jennifer Abel filed the lawsuit in the Southern District of New York, where they accuse Lively and Reynolds of civil extortion, defamation, and invasion of privacy. Baldoni sued The New York Times after they published a story “‘We Can Bury Anyone’: Inside a Hollywood Smear Machine” including Blake Lively’s allegations of sexual harrassment against the director.
Now that legal proceedings are underway, one party is worried about information being released to the public.
What Happened to Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds Texts?
In a virtual March 6 hearing, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds‘ attorney Meryl Governski requested an additional protective order for “already non-public information” conversations with other “high profile individuals.”
“There is a significant chance of irreparable harm if marginal conversations with high profile individuals with no relevance to the case were to fall into wrong hands,” Governski argued. “There are 100 million reasons for these parties to leak information because the PR value is greater than complying with the court’s orders.”
They also requested that other sensitive information in discovery be designated as “attorney eyes only,” were information would only be seen by the party’s attorney and not the party itself.
Information that would be covered include those pertaining to the “physical and mental health of the parties,” “speaking about children,” “locations of private residences or homes,” “non-related third parties,” and “personal and intimate conversations with unrelated third parties.”
Blake Lively’s publicist Leslie Sloane and Vision PR’s legal representative Sigrid McCawley also added, “There is sensitive information to protect, including trade secrets, marketing plans and business strategies, discussions regarding other clients and nonpublic projects. This is a feud between PR firms, trade secrets and confidential information.”
Justin Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman responded by saying that the protective order was “overboard and unnecessary” saying, “No one has any intent of harming Ms. Lively in any way” as to her allegations, the often-pugilistic litigator told the court. “My clients have a right to defend themselves … that is in no way abusing the victim.”
Freedman argues that the PR companies “advertise who they represent.” He also claimed that his team has continued to go to “great lengths to not mention third parties by name.”
“We shouldn’t be put in a position where we are the ones that have to run to court every single time just given attorney’s eyes only protection,” Freedman concluded. “My client has a right to defend themself.”
