Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively, the ‘It Ends with Us’ stars, continue to fight the rogue battle over legal fees in court following sexual harassment claims and a countersuit row. The 42-year-old actor asks the federal judge to deny or substantially reduce the actress’ demands of USD 8 million in attorney fees and litigation costs. Citing inflated numbers, he expressed that Lively and her team failed to present credible evidence deserving the amount.Here’s a closer look at Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively’s legal row over attorney fees and costs.
Justin Baldoni requests that the court reconsider Blake Lively’s legal fees
Justin Baldoni’s team filed a motion on Monday, July 13, 2026, stating that Blake Lively demanded an exaggerated sum. “Lively’s fee request is so over-inclusive that it sweeps in fees for researching her own liability for perjury arising from her California CRD claim and her Rule 11 motion for which the Court has already denied fees,” the documents said, per TMZ.As an alternative, the ‘Con Man’ actor’s attorney claims that if the judge awards fees at all, it should at least be a six-figure number. The motion stated that Blake Lively’s demand for legal fees goes beyond defending his USD 400 million defamation lawsuit. “Lively fails to meet her burden to present credible evidence showing that the fees and costs she seeks to recover are reasonable and, accordingly, her fee motion should be denied in its entirety,” the filing states.
Justin Baldoni points out problems in Blake Lively’s legal claims
In the motion, Justin Baldoni argued that Blake Lively’s case was terribly overstaffed. The documents stated that there were multiple attorneys at hearings, excessive internal conferencing, extremely excessive research and online investigation, and 7,070.20 billable hours billed by 82 timekeepers (20 times what the court previously approved), according to PEOPLE.
When Justin Baldoni spoke for the first time about the case
Justin Baldoni opened up about the entire legal fiasco he dealt with for around two years. Earlier this month, he shared an Instagram video with his wife, Emily Baldoni, where they sat and thanked their well-wishers. They specifically mentioned that their immense gratitude does not erase the pain, injustice, and trauma the duo experienced.As for the primary case of Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively, they privately shook hands and settled a couple of months ago. The details are unknown to the public.Disclaimer: The information in this report is based on a legal hearing as reported by a third-party source. The details provided represent allegations made by the parties involved and are not proven facts. The case is ongoing, and a final verdict has not been reached. The publication does not claim that the allegations are true.