The legal dispute between the protagonists of It Ends With Us continues. Justin Baldoni has formally responded to Blake Lively's request that the actor cover more than $8 million in legal fees and litigation costs resulting from the prolonged legal confrontation between the two.

The origin of the fee dispute The legal conflict dates back to December 2024, when Lively sued Baldoni and his production company, Wayfarer Studios, accusing them of conspiring to destroy her reputation after she reported sexual harassment during the filming of the film. Baldoni denied the allegations and filed a $400 million defamation countersuit against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds.

In May 2026, both parties reached an out-of-court agreement, but without financial compensation for Lively. However, a month later, Judge Lewis J. Liman ruled that Lively is entitled to seek legal costs arising from defending Baldoni's counterclaim.

The legal basis for the claim The judge's ruling is based on Section 47.1 of the California Civil Code, a law designed to protect people who report sexual assault, harassment or discrimination from defamation claims that could be considered retaliation. Under this regulation, anyone who files a defamation suit against a complainant and loses must pay the defendant's fees and costs, unless it is proven that the allegations were made with malice.

Judge Liman determined that Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios did not present evidence of malice on Lively's part, so the actress is entitled to reimbursement of her legal expenses. However, the magistrate rejected Lively's request for damages.

The figure requested Lively submitted his formal request on June 29, requesting a total of $8,035,040.88, broken down as follows:

$7,495,526.87 in attorney fees

$539,514.01 in litigation costs

Lawyers who represented Lively billed rates of up to $2,187 per hour, and included work from two law firms. The lead attorney, Michael Gottlieb, billed $457,000 for 224 hours of work.

Baldoni's response Baldoni's legal team filed its response on July 13, asking the judge to deny the petition entirely or substantially reduce it. They argue that Lively has not presented credible evidence demonstrating her right to receive the claimed fees.

Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, called the request "overly inclusive," noting that it includes expenses for investigating Lively's own liability for perjury, as well as a Rule 11 motion for which the court had already denied fees.

Furthermore, Baldoni's defense maintains that the figure is overinflated, arguing that, if any payment is granted, the amount should be six figures, well below the 8 million requested. They note that Lively's legal team was overstaffed, with 82 professionals billing 7,070 hours, roughly 20 times more than courts have approved in similar high-profile defamation cases.

Next steps Judge Lewis Liman must now decide whether to award all, part or none of Lively's requested fees. This is the last pending financial claim in the conflict between both actors, which has kept the entertainment industry in suspense for months.