Blake Lively is not getting her enormous wish, $8 million in attorneys’ fees, because a judge just ruled Justin Baldoni will only have to fork over $400K.
A judge dismissed Justin Baldoni’s defamation lawsuit against Blake and the New York Times last month, but ruled she was entitled to attorneys’ fees for defeating the claim. Blake asked a judge to award her $8 million, claiming Justin owed her $7,495,526.87 in fees she incurred in fighting his lawsuit and $539,514.01 in costs and expenses. Justin called BS on the claim, telling a judge she massively overinflated the dollar amount and he should have to pay a six-figure sum, not seven.
The judge agreed, awarding Blake $363,245.40 in attorney’s fees and another $44,206.35 in costs.
This seems to be the last bit of legal business between Blake and Justin, still hanging after the two settled their lawsuit prior to what would have been a very messy trial scheduled to start in May. No money changed hands in the settlement, but Lively dropped the sexual harassment claims against Justin.
A joint statement was released after they reached a settlement, which reads, in part: “We acknowledge the process presented challenges and recognize concerns raised by Ms. Lively deserved to be heard. We remain firmly committed to workplaces free of improprieties and unproductive environments”.
