Justin Baldoni’s Lawyer Says No Settlement Deal Reached After Court Day with Blake Lively, Believes Will Proceed to Trial

Jack SmartThu, February 12, 2026 at 2:09 AM UTC

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Justin Baldoni; Blake Lively leaving a New York federal courthouse on Feb. 11

Nancy Rivera/ BACKGRID; T.JACKSON/ BACKGRID

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni spent six hours in mandated mediation on Wednesday, Feb. 11, as part of her sexual harassment case against him

The two It Ends with Us stars exited the New York City courthouse separately with no comment

No settlement deal was reached, as Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman confirmed to reporters, adding that he believes the case will go to trial

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni have not reached a settlement deal amid their ongoing legal battle.

The It Ends with Us stars exited federal court on Wednesday, Feb. 11, after six hours with Magistrate Judge Sarah L. Cave for their mandated mediation, a routine part of federal procedure. They failed to reach a settlement in Lively’s sexual harassment case against the director-costar, a source confirms to PEOPLE.

Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, confirmed to reporters outside the New York City courthouse that a deal has yet to be reached, per Variety. Asked if he believed Lively v. Wayfarer Studios et al. will go to trial, he reportedly said, “I do. We’re looking forward to it.”

PEOPLE has reached out to representatives of Lively and Baldoni for comment.

Justin Baldoni on Feb. 11

ANGELA WEISS / AFP via Getty

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Lively, 38, and Baldoni, 42, separately passed through assembled members of the media on their way out of the building, saying nothing.

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“The case will move forward,” Freedman told gathered reporters, per a video shared on X. He added that he was “very hopeful” about how Baldoni’s case will proceed, acknowledging to reporters that “there’s always a chance” for a settlement. “We’ll see.”

Lively first filed a sexual-harassment complaint against Baldoni, alleging misconduct on the set of their 2024 Colleen Hoover adaptation It Ends with Us, which he has denied. The Jane the Virgin alum’s counterclaims against Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, which involve allegations of extortion and defamation, were dismissed by Judge Lewis J. Liman in June 2025. The Gossip Girl alum is seeking over $160 million in damages.

Blake Lively on Feb. 11

Nancy Rivera/BACKGRID

In November 2025, unsealed court filings originally submitted in July showed Lively including more than 100 names of potential witnesses, including Emily Blunt, Gigi Hadid and Hugh Jackman. A batch of alleged emails and text and audio messages were submitted to court and unsealed, revealing explosive messages between Lively and Reynolds, 49, and their friends Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Taylor Swift and more.

Last month in a hearing, Baldoni's lawyers argued for a dismissal of the case, framing his dispute with Lively as a creative disagreement rather than misconduct. Lively’s legal team maintained that Baldoni's behavior on the movie's set was consistently inappropriate.

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Attorneys for both Lively and Baldoni have indicated that they plan to testify during Lively v. Wayfarer Studios et al., scheduled to begin on May 18 in New York.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”