Blake Lively’s Lawyers Blast Justin Baldoni’s Lawyers’ Deposition Behavior, Say Questions About Her Sex History Should Be Off Limits

According To The variety Blake Lively‘s lawyers filed a motion for sanctions Friday against attorneys for Justin Baldoni, accusing them of laughing, speechifying and engaging in other disruptive behavior during depositions. Her lawyers have also complained about questions regarding Lively’s romantic and sexual history, which they argue are irrelevant to her harassment and retaliation lawsuit against Baldoni and others involved in “It Ends With Us.” “Ms. Lively’s sexual and/or romantic history has no bearing on the matters at issue in this case and we will not tolerate such examination,” her lawyers wrote to Baldoni’s lawyers, including Bryan Freedman, in September. Lively’s side invoked the “rape shield law,” which protects victims of sexual assault from questions about their sexual history. The last straw apparently came on Monday, when, according to Lively’s side, Freedman and co-counsel Kevin Fritz impeded and delayed the deposition of Nicole Alexander, who is testifying as a defense expert. Lively’s side accused Freedman and Fritz of an “ongoing pattern of deposition misconduct,” including chewing up time by making lengthy objections. Lively’s lawyers have filed motions for sanctions several times already in the highly contentious case. In one such instance, they accused Freedman of trying the case in the media. In another, they accused Baldoni’s lawyers of improperly withholding evidence during discovery. The parties have a court-mandated settlement conference scheduled for Feb. 11. The trial, originally set to begin in March, was postponed earlier this month to May 18. Baldoni’s team has filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that her allegations amount to nothing more than a “litany of minor grievances” and the case should be thrown out. Lively’s side responded that her director and co-star is seeking to avoid accountability for creating a hostile environment on set. Judge Lewis Liman is expected to hear argument on the summary judgment motion and on one of the sanction’s motions on Jan. 22.