Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively claims in harassment suit against Baldoni

BBC News · 🇬🇧 public United Kingdom · Apr 02, 2026 · 315 words · By Madeline Halpert

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What to know about Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively claims in harassment suit against Baldoni

Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively claims in harassment suit against Baldoni A federal judge has dismissed most of the claims in a sexual harassment lawsuit actress Blake Lively filed against her co-star Justin Baldoni.

Claims checked 9

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center80%

Right20%

5 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Why it matters

In a 152-page opinion released on Thursday, Judge Lewis Liman threw out 10 of 13 claims in Lively's case, including allegations of harassment and defamation.

Common ground

The pair, who starred in the 2024 film It Ends with Us, have been locked in a legal battle since Lively sued Baldoni in 2024, accusing him of sexual harassment and waging a smear campaign against her, which Baldoni denies.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively claims in harassment suit against Baldoni?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that A judge last year dismissed Baldoni's $400m (£295m) counter-lawsuit against Lively which alleged civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ex59yy4j2o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 9 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

help Insufficient Evidence 6

verified Verified By Reference 3

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Claim 1: “A judge last year dismissed Baldoni's $400m (£295m) counter-lawsuit against Lively which alleged civil extortion, defamation and invasion of privacy”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 2: “The judge left in place three claims against Baldoni, involving retaliation and aiding and abetting in retaliation, just weeks before the two are set to go to trial in New York”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 3: “Judge dismisses most of Blake Lively claims in harassment suit against Baldoni”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it verified by reference based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — It Ends with Us is a 2024 American romantic drama film directed by Justin Baldoni and written by Christy Hall, based on the 2016 novel by Colleen Hoover. The film stars Blake Lively alongside Baldoni,…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Ends_with_Us_(film)

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The production of the 2024 American film It Ends with Us, starring American actors Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni, has been the subject of controversy due to highly publicized disputes and litigation…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Ends_with_Us_controversy

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Justin Louis Baldoni (born January 24, 1984) is an American actor and director. He is best known for playing Rafael Solano on the CW telenovela Jane the Virgin (2014–2019) and for starring in and dire…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Baldoni

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Claim 4: “Lively filed a suit against Baldoni's Wayfarer Studios in December 2024, alleging Baldoni sexually harassed her on set and retaliated against her for bringing those complaints, among other allegations”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 5: “In a 152-page opinion released on Thursday, Judge Lewis Liman threw out 10 of 13 claims in Lively's case, including allegations of harassment and defamation”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it verified by reference based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Lewis Jeffrey Liman (born in 1960) is an American lawyer and jurist serving as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_J._Liman

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a comprehensive list of all Article III and Article IV United States federal judges appointed by President Donald Trump, as well as a partial list of Article I federal judicial appointments, e…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_federal_judges_appoint…

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Claim 6: “Lively's legal team have accused Baldoni and his film studio Wayfarer of leading a 'multi-tiered plan' to wreck her reputation, which included social media manipulation and using friendly journalists to further certain narratives. She shared details of the allegations in a New York Times article published before her lawsuit”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 7: “Baldoni's legal team have said the allegations against him are 'categorically false' and argued they hired a crisis public relations manager because Lively had threatened to derail the film unless her demands were met”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 8: “A federal judge has dismissed most of the claims in a sexual harassment lawsuit actress Blake Lively filed against her co-star Justin Baldoni”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it verified by reference based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Blake Ellender Brown (born August 25, 1987), known professionally as Blake Lively, is an American actress. A daughter of actor Ernie Lively, she made her professional debut in his directorial project …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blake_Lively

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Claim 9: “The case stems from interactions between Baldoni and Lively on the set of It Ends With Us, an adaption of a best-selling Colleen Hoover novel, which features Lively as the main character, Lily Bloom, a young woman who grew up witnessing domestic abuse and finds herself in the same position years later”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it insufficient evidence based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.