Justin Baldoni has added one other high-profile legal professional to his authorized crew amid his battle in opposition to Blake Energetic.
In accordance with court docket paperwork obtained by Us Weekly, a discover of look was filed on Monday, September 15. The paperwork notified the court docket that lawyer Alexandra Shapiro can be becoming a member of as counsel for Baldoni, 41, and Wayfarer Studios. The discover was filed by Shapiro.
Shapiro is a New York–primarily based legal protection legal professional who has represented Sean “Diddy” Combs and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. Earlier than cofounding her agency, Shapiro served as a clerk for the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Us has reached out to Baldoni for remark.
Baldoni and Energetic's authorized drama started in December 2024. The actress, 37, accused her It Ends With Us costar and director of sexual harassment, making a hostile work setting and operating a smear marketing campaign in opposition to her. Baldoni vehemently denied the allegations.
Baldoni subsequently countersued Energetic and accused her of making an attempt to smear his identify. His lawsuit was dismissed by Decide Lewis J. Liman in June.
Whereas Energetic bought the authorized win on the time, her lawsuit in opposition to Baldoni stays ongoing. The pair are scheduled to move to trial in Could 2026.
“The court docket determination on the movement to dismiss has no impact in any respect on the reality that there was no harassment nor any smear marketing campaign, and it doesn't in any means have an effect on our vigorous protection in opposition to Ms. Energetic's claims,” Baldoni's legal professional stated in an announcement on the time. “Discovery is continuing and we're assured that we are going to prevail in opposition to these factually baseless accusations. As an alternative of revising the prevailing claims, our purchasers can be pursuing extra authorized choices which can be out there to us.”
As Baldoni and his crew started making ready for trial, Energetic was deposed by Baldoni's legal professionals in New York Metropolis in July. Us beforehand reported that Baldoni was current for the deposition.
Blake Energetic suffered a small setback in court docket after a choose denied her effort to acquire communications despatched by Justin Baldoni's authorized crew to content material creators or the press about her, Us Weekly can affirm. On Monday, August 4, a New York federal choose dominated on the movement filed by Baldoni's lawyer's agency Liner Freedman […]
“We're very happy with the result of her deposition, and now sit up for deposing Justin Baldoni and every of the codefendants in brief order,” a spokesperson for Energetic beforehand stated in an announcement to Us. “Deposition testimony is confidential for good purpose — it's proof in a authorized continuing and is topic to objections and evidentiary guidelines. Juries aren't simply handed deposition transcripts to learn at dwelling, and as an alternative they hearken to testimony that's offered at trial underneath a choose's supervision.”
Earlier this month, information broke that a further particular person got here ahead in opposition to Baldoni. In accordance with court docket paperwork obtained by Us, the particular person, whose identify was redacted, accused Baldoni of verbal abuse and claimed that the actor was not “permitted on set throughout nearly all of manufacturing because of these experiences.”
The accuser may doubtlessly function a witness in opposition to him in his and Energetic's upcoming trial.
Baldoni has not addressed the allegations.
