Blake Lively's Deposition Delayed in Explosive Legal Face-Off With Justin Baldoni

Blake Lively's deposition has faced a delay in her ongoing legal showdown with Justin Baldoni.

Documents reveal that Lively's deposition, initially scheduled for Thursday, July 17, in New York City, has now been pushed back to July 31, according to a news outlet. The postponement follows the dismissal of social media strategist Jed Wallace from the case on jurisdictional grounds earlier that same day.

Since Wallace was dismissed without prejudice, Lively has until July 30 to refile against him. Both teams now require additional time to review the complaint, which may change the dynamics of the deposition.

A spokesperson for Lively stated, "Ms. Lively respects the Court's decision, which has nothing to do with the merits of her allegations about Mr. Wallace's role in the smear campaign and relates solely to the procedural question of whether he is subject to jurisdiction in New York or elsewhere. We currently are evaluating our numerous options for holding Mr. Wallace accountable for the pivotal role he served in the retaliatory effort that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties paid him at least tens of thousands of dollars a month to perform."

Lively is set to testify in her and Baldoni's upcoming trial. "The ultimate moment for a plaintiff's story to be told is at trial," her lawyer, Mike Gottlieb, told People on May 8. "We expect that to be the case here [with Lively]. So we would, of course, expect her to be a witness…"

Baldoni's team has yet to comment on the matter.

Previously, Baldoni's legal team accused Lively of leveraging her "celebrity status" to control the proceedings surrounding the deposition. "Lively is a plaintiff who has hurled serious allegations of misconduct against the Wayfarer Parties," read a letter obtained by Entertainment Weekly. "Like all defendants, the Wayfarer Parties are entitled to depose Lively to develop evidence crucial to their defense. They are also entitled to choose the location of the deposition, which they did."

Lively and Baldoni's legal disputes date back to December 2024, when Lively filed a lawsuit against her former It Ends With Us costar and director. The lawsuit accused Baldoni, 41, of sexual harassment, creating a hostile work environment, and orchestrating an alleged smear campaign against her.

Baldoni has categorically denied the allegations and countersued Lively, her husband Ryan Reynolds, and publicist Leslie Sloane, alleging civil extortion and defamation. All parties have refuted the claims. Judge Lewis J. Liman dismissed Baldoni's lawsuit against Lively, Reynolds and Sloane in June.

"Today's opinion is a total victory and a complete vindication for Blake Lively, along with those that Justin Baldoni and the Wayfarer Parties dragged into their retaliatory lawsuit, including Ryan Reynolds, Leslie Sloane, and The New York Times," Lively's lawyers stated at that time. "As we have said from day one, this '$400 million' lawsuit was a sham, and the Court saw right through it. We look forward to the next round, which is seeking attorneys' fees, treble damages, and punitive damages against Baldoni, Sarowitz, Nathan, and the other Wayfarer Parties who perpetrated this abusive litigation."

Baldoni is not stepping down from his legal effort against Lively after the dismissal of his lawsuit against her and her husband, Reynolds. "Ms. Lively and her team's predictable declaration of victory is false, so let us be clear about the latest ruling," Baldoni's attorney, Bryan Freedman, told Us Weekly.