Blake Lively hit a legal setback Wednesday when a federal judge dismissed charges against Justin Baldoni’s social media advisor she alleges orchestrated a smear campaign against her through the rollout of “It Ends With Us” last year.
In her federal lawsuit filed in December, Lively claims that Texas-based PR and social media specialist Jed Wallace led a smear campaign against her on behalf of “It Ends With Us” director and co-star Baldoni, but U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman granted Wallace’s motion to dismiss himself without prejudice on Wednesday, citing jurisdictional limitations.
Liman granted Wallace’s motion to dismiss without prejudice, allowing Lively until July 31 to refile her claims or pursue the case in another jurisdiction. The ruling marks another hurdle for Lively’s claim that Wallace, along with Baldoni and publicists Melissa Nathan and Jen Abel, coordinated a character assassination effort leading up to the film’s 2024 release.
In his decision, Liman found that Lively failed to establish that New York was the appropriate venue to sue Wallace, who is based in Texas and whose alleged conduct lacked sufficient connection to the state.
“The Wallace Defendants are located in Texas, and Lively has not alleged that they are responsible for any act that would subject them to jurisdiction in New York,” Liman wrote in his Wednesday ruling. “The alleged negative publicity campaign against Lively largely took place outside of New York. The few alleged actions targeting New York were taken by others, and there are no allegations suggesting the Wallace Defendants were aware of them. Therefore, the Wallace Defendants cannot be forced to defend this lawsuit in New York. If Lively wishes to pursue her claims against the Wallace Defendants, she must do so in another forum or refile her complaint to allege jurisdiction over the Wallace Defendants in this forum. “
Lively alleged that Wallace and his firm, Street Relations, coordinated with Baldoni and his team to spread negative stories about her in retaliation for complaints she raised about alleged sexual harassment she experienced during the film’s production. She claimed that Street Relations worked with Nathan and Abel, who are both based in Los Angeles, and communicated with reporters and content creators based in New York, hence the jurisdiction was valid. Liman however, did not agree.
“There also are no factual allegations that either of the Wallace Defendants has transacted any business in New York or committed tortious acts within New York,” he said.
Back in February, Wallace filed a counter complaint in a Texas federal court accusing Lively of falsely accusing him in a web of lawsuits and complaints of creating fake social media content to smear her. He also sought a court statement that he was not involved in harassment or the alleged campaign.
At the time, Lively’s team declared the lawsuit just another “retaliation” for her speaking out about sexual harassment on the set of “It Ends With Us.”
“Another day, another state, another nine-figure lawsuit seeking to sue Ms. Lively ‘into oblivion’ for speaking out against sexual harassment and retaliation,” the statement reads. “This is not just a publicity stunt — it is transparent retaliation in response to allegations contained within a sexual harassment and retaliation complaint that Ms. Lively filed with the California Civil Rights Department. While this lawsuit will be dismissed, we are pleased that Mr. Wallace has finally emerged from the shadows, and that he too will be held accountable in federal court.”
Following the Wednesday ruling, Lively’s lawsuit against Baldoni and several members of his team, including two publicists, will continue to move forward in federal court under Judge Liman. Wallace is still suing Lively separately for defamation in Texas.
