Legal Subpoenas
What is the current legal conflict between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni?
The current legal battle between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni centers on subpoenas. Lively has sued Baldoni (her co-star and director of 'It Ends With Us'), his production company, Wayfarer executives, and PR/crisis management experts. Her lawsuit alleges that Baldoni sexually harassed her during filming and subsequently launched a retaliatory smear campaign against her. Lively has gone on the offensive in this legal conflict, which was initially discussed last week. The dispute represents an escalation in their ongoing professional conflict related to the film they worked on together.
Watch clip answer (00:35m)
Law&Crime Network
00:26 - 01:01
What privacy concerns are raised by Blake Lively's subpoenas in her legal battle with Justin Baldoni?
Blake Lively's legal team has issued extensive subpoenas seeking complete call and text histories, real-time location information, and web browsing data over several years from multiple targets. These requests are considered wildly disproportionate to the case's needs and potentially violate multiple legal protections including attorney-client privilege, spousal privilege, and physician-patient privilege. The subpoenas have been criticized for unnecessarily invading the privacy of numerous third parties including family members, friends, business partners, and essentially anyone who communicated with the targets. This extensive reach appears to go beyond legitimate discovery purposes, potentially abusing the civil litigation process while compromising the privacy of individuals not directly involved in the legal dispute.
Watch clip answer (00:47m)
Law&Crime Network
08:12 - 09:00
What is the controversy between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni regarding subpoenas in their legal dispute?
The controversy centers on what Baldoni's legal team describes as 'overbroad subpoenas' issued by Lively's team to major cellular providers (AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile). These subpoenas seek extensive communication records including call logs, text logs, data logs, and cell site location information from multiple parties involved in the case, including Wayfarer employees and non-party individuals. The subpoenas request all documents concerning ingoing and outgoing communications over a lengthy period spanning from December 1, 2022, to the present. Baldoni's team has filed a letter with Judge Lewis J. Lyman to raise concerns about this discovery issue, suggesting the scope of these requests is excessive and potentially problematic.
Watch clip answer (00:54m)
Law&Crime Network
05:08 - 06:02
What legal action has Blake Lively initiated against Justin Baldoni?
Blake Lively has initiated the discovery process to collect evidence that will expose the people, tactics, and methods allegedly used to damage her reputation and family over the past year. Her legal team aims to gather communications and documentation that they claim will reveal efforts to 'destroy and bury' her reputation. This discovery phase will allow Lively's team to obtain 'receipts' that reportedly cannot be found on Mr. Friedman's website. The legal commentator suggests these materials, like Lively herself, will eventually 'have their day in court,' indicating the evidence will be formally presented in upcoming legal proceedings.
Watch clip answer (00:22m)Law&Crime Network
01:48 - 02:11
What is Blake Lively's legal team seeking through the subpoenas issued to Jed Wallace?
Blake Lively's legal team has issued subpoenas to investigate Jed Wallace's business model and alleged activities aimed at distracting from the sexual harassment and retaliation claims made by Lively. According to a spokesperson for Lively and Ryan Reynolds, they are "delighted to start discovery" on these matters. Wallace is a particularly significant figure in this legal battle, as he was initially named as a defendant in Lively's first civil rights complaint filed with California Civil authorities. The legal team appears focused on uncovering evidence related to Wallace's actions that they believe were intended to deflect attention from Lively's serious allegations.
Watch clip answer (00:33m)
Law&Crime Network
02:38 - 03:12
What is the court likely to decide regarding the subpoenas in the Blake Lively vs. Justin Baldoni case?
The court will likely not allow subpoenas as broadly defined as Baldoni's team describes them - such as requesting logs of every phone call and text message over a two to three-year period. Instead, the court may seek a middle ground by narrowing the scope of discovery. However, the court may still permit discovery involving the 15 people mentioned if they are deemed relevant to the case and litigation. Jesse Weber suggests there appears to be a specific explanation for what Lively is seeking, which could lead to a compromise solution somewhere between the two parties' positions.
Watch clip answer (00:42m)
Law&Crime Network
25:26 - 26:08