Justin Baldoni’s lawyers claim Blake Lively is attempting to dictate the terms of her upcoming deposition just because she’s famous.
The “Jane the Virgin” alum’s legal team filed a response to Lively’s request on Friday that her deposition — which is set to take place Thursday in New York City — be held at her lawyer’s office since she was scared of being ambushed by paparazzi outside of Baldoni’s lawyer’s office.
But Baldoni’s lawyers argued that there’s no proof of this and pointed out that the two lawyers’ offices are only about a mile from one another, per the filing obtained by TMZ Sunday.
Baldoni’s team also claimed that having Lively’s deposition at her lawyer’s office puts them at a disadvantage as they might need their own space to have a discussion in private during that time.
“Although Lively’s foot-stomping and use of her celebrity status may have enabled her to seize control of the film, which is the crux of this dispute, her counsel’s tantrum has no place in this Court,” the actor’s attorneys said, per the outlet.
Baldoni and Lively’s lawyers didn’t immediately respond to Page Six’s requests for comment.
Lively’s representatives have previously accused Baldoni’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, of attempting to make her deposition “a spectacle.”
“Ms. Lively is looking forward to her deposition next week, and it should follow the same rules as every other witness in this case,” her rep told People in a statement on Friday.
“Justin Baldoni’s lawyer has tried to make this matter a public spectacle at every turn, even proposing to sell tickets to a televised deposition at Madison Square Garden,” the statement continued. “This is a serious matter of sexual harassment and retaliation, and it deserves to be treated as such.”
Freedman talked about the upcoming deposition on TMZ Live on June 10.
“I’m gonna ask her questions under penalty of perjury, and she’s gonna have to provide evidence, and she’s gonna have to provide the truth of the stories,” he said.
“We’re gonna see how consistent her testimony is with the actual facts of what transpired,” he added, noting his team has video footage, emails and text messages.
Lively, 37, is suing Baldoni, 41, for alleged sexual harassment on the set of their movie, “It Ends With Us.”
She’s also suing his publicists for allegedly orchestrating a subsequent smear campaign against her.
Baldoni, who has denied the allegations, countersued Lively and her husband, Ryan Reynolds, for defamation and extortion.
However, a judge tossed out his suit last month.
The post Justin Baldoni claims Blake Lively’s using her ‘celebrity status’ to gain upper hand at deposition: report appeared first on Page Six.
