Overview
- Citing filings made June 29, Lively asked the court to award roughly $7,495,527 in attorney fees plus about $539,514 in other costs, a total near $8.04 million.
- Judge Lewis J. Liman ruled that Lively qualifies as the prevailing party under California civil law, a status that allows her to seek fee recovery while rejecting her request for extra punitive damages.
- The fee claim grows out of a dispute over the film It Ends With Us in which Lively alleged harassment and reputational harm and Baldoni earlier sued her for $400 million, a claim that was dismissed.
- The parties settled in May but left attorneys’ fees and costs for the court to decide; Baldoni and Wayfarer Studios have until July 13 to oppose the fee request before the judge issues a ruling.
- If the court awards fees, Baldoni and Wayfarer could face an eight-figure payout or a reduced order at the judge’s discretion, and Lively’s lawyers say she has already paid and continues to pay the invoices the request seeks to cover.