Judge Rejects Blake Lively's 'Intrusive' Phone Record Demand in Justin Baldoni Case

A judge has denied Blake Lively's request for Justin Baldoni's phone records, deeming it "overly intrusive" amidst their ongoing legal clash. This courtroom drama stems from Lively's accusations that Baldoni orchestrated a smear campaign against her, a claim he vehemently denies.

Lively's legal team subpoenaed the phone records of Baldoni and others, seeking to expose an alleged plot to damage her reputation. However, Judge Lewis Liman put a stop to the request in an order filed Friday.

"The Court put a stop to Ms. Lively’s egregious attempt to invade our clients’ privacy," Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, stated. "This is a big win. No matter how the Lively Parties may try to spin this decision, the Court saw their efforts for what they really are: a desperate fishing expedition intended to salvage their debunked claims long after they already savaged our clients’ reputations in the New York Times."

Liman specifically denied Lively's request for Baldoni's records but left the door open for her to subpoena records from "non-parties." He noted that even without the content of calls or messages, phone records still contain sensitive information, such as who the Wayfarer Parties spoke to, and when, including doctors, psychologists, or acquaintances.

However, Lively can still request phone records of others potentially involved in the alleged smear campaign. "Lively may make discovery requests tailored to those individuals," Liman noted. "She is permitted to use the tools of discovery to identify the contact information or telephone numbers for those individuals. Even assuming additional individuals participated in the alleged campaign, the hope that discovery will turn up information on such participants does not justify the broad scope of the Subpoenas."

Lively's team says they are sending requests "directly" following Liman's order. A spokesperson for Lively questioned what Bryan Freedman was supposedly hiding, suggesting he was trying to keep the phone records of Baldoni and others secret during their retaliatory campaign. It's getting spicy! I'm ready for the tea.

The legal battle between Lively and Baldoni began after Lively accused Baldoni of sexual harassment on the set of "It Ends With Us." In response, Baldoni filed his own lawsuit, claiming Lively's accusations were false and aimed at repairing her reputation.

In December, Lively detailed allegations of sexual harassment, retaliation, intentional affliction of emotional distress, negligence and more against Baldoni and film producer Jamey Heath. Baldoni insisted that Lively had "falsely" accused him in an attempt to repair her reputation amid the fallout around the movie's press tour after the actress took control of the film.

Baldoni's legal team claimed that Lively had no evidence of a deliberate smear campaign and instead had worked to repair her reputation by accusing the actor and others of sexual harassment. In an amended complaint, Lively claimed that two additional female cast members are willing to testify during the scheduled 2026 trial. However, Baldoni's lawyer slammed the new version of the lawsuit as "unsubstantial hearsay."