Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni Spare lawyers during the first hearing in court

The lawyers of actors Justin Baldoni and Blake Lively spent their first day in the court that faced sexual harassment and other accusations that have exploded around their film, ends with us.

In December, Lively filed a legal complaint against Baldoni, accusing him of sexual harassment and starting a smear campaign against her. Baldoni has denied his statements and, in response, sued it for various reasons, including defamation.

Cine co -star were not obliged to attend the pre -trial meeting in the Federal Court of Manhattan on Monday.

But the hour and a half hearing still became heated when the lawyers for each side claimed that the other was moody his client out of court.

The case is supposed to be resolved here in court, “said Lively’s lawyer Michael Gottlieb, told Jude Lewis Liman. “It is not supposed to be resolved in the press.”

Gottlieb accused Baldoni’s lawyer Bryan Freedman, of making “inflammatory extrajudicial comments” about Lively’s “character and motifs” during the appearances in the news channels.

In response, Freedman said Gottlieb was trying to impose a “gag order” that prevented him from talking to the media. Baldoni, he said, was the one who had suffered damage for his reputation.

“My client is financially and emotionally,” Fredman told the court.

Based on a novel Superventas by Colleen Hoover, ends with us, it became a box office after its launch in August. But despite their financial success, the rumors of a bitter dispute between Baldoni and Lively began to turn before the film was released.

Both parties in the legal fights “have given the public much to delight,” said the judge Liman in the Court on Monday.

He said that if the case ends up being “litigated in the press”, it could be forced to ascend on a declaration date of March 2026 so that the jurors are not harmed against any of the defendants.

The judge also said that he would adopt a measure of the New York Lawyers Association, rule 3.6, which prohibits lawyers from publicly making statements that could influence the result of a trial.

Monday’s audience occurred after Baldoni filed a complaint amended against Lively, which included a “timeline” of the 168 -page events in the case. His team also launched a website with the new complaint, as well as other publicly available text videos and messages that surround the case.

Lively’s lawyer mentioned the website on court on Monday. “Who created the website?” Gottlieb asked. “Who financed it?”

Mr. Gottlieb also took into account the Baldoni Takes that Baldoni has released from a romantic scene ends with us, which says that he demonstrates that the accusations of sexual harassment of Lively are unfounded.

But Lively has responded by saying that the couple’s images filming a slow dance scene are “condemnatory” and corroborates their statements.

Lively’s team pledged on Monday to present a complaint of their own, which would imply even more people in the case.

Several other parties are already wrapped in the legal drama. Baldoni is demanding the New York Times by defamation, claiming that his co -star gave him access to his civil rights complaint. The Times was the first story he publishes about his suit last December. The New York Times has denied these accusations.

Several public relations that worked with Baldoni and Lively during their film are also accused in the case.

Some of those issues will be addressed in a separate trial after Lively and Baldoni, Judge Liman said on Monday.

He also said that the legal teams of Baldoni and Lively would have to accept a protection order, a legal document that protects the persons involved in the case of another person accused of abusing them or harassing them.

Such order is necessary, said Judge Liman, due to the “significant number of high profile individuals” in the case and “nature of the accusations.”

During the hearing, Baldoni’s lawyer also pressed the judge to keep the trial that suggested both parties, saying that his client wanted the case to progress “as quickly as possible.”

The Judge Liman agreed to the application of Baldoni’s lawyer, with some small schedule changes.

“There will come a time when the jury will talk about this issue,” the judge said to the court.