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Among Livelys legal claims: sexual harassment and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
She alleged in her December 24 lawsuit that they secretly coordinated to launch the smear campaign against Lively.
Two Georgia poll workers won $148 million in their defamation trial against Giuliani.
YouTuber Tasha K. owes Cardi B almost$4 million for defamation.
The dispute has also hearkened back to Me Too discourse.
Others have seen the unfolding disputes as little more than workplace drama involving big personalities with high financial stakes.
So do we have anotherDeppv.Heardon our hands?
Scenario one: Its a stalemate.
I think its a stalemate, Engelmayer said.
Scenario two: All lawsuits are settled.
Two huge celebrities battling it out in court over on-set drama?
The cases between Lively and Baldoni are going to settle for sure.
It benefits neither one of them to be in litigation for the next two years.
The most important thing is the publicity, the lawsuits are second.
Barrelling toward trial has major risks.
Both sides would have to file more documents publicly for each of them to protect their own reputations.
They want to get their side out.
They want to restore their image.
They want to protect their brand.
Scenario three: Lively and Baldoni go to trial.
The vast majority of lawsuits settle, but settlement only happens if all sides agree.
So far, these sides do not see eye to eye.
This case reminds me a lot of the Depp-Heard case.
The only motivating factor seems to be reputational repair.
Scenario four: Lively wins.
Baldoni is not as famous as Lively.
(Guilty as charged!)
This could make Baldonis efforts more challenging for him.
Who does the jury believe more Ms. Lively or Mr. Baldoni?
The case will come down to a heavily scrutinized credibility determination by the jury.
Popular celebrities will naturally garner more public support with a less critical eye.
People dont want to believe that their favorite star is capable of bad behavior.
The same is true for their counsel.
And their response to the lawsuit has been to launch more attacks against Ms. Lively since her filing.
Scenario five: The New YorkTimesdefends itself.
But just because you do not like the news story does not mean it is false and defamatory.
This certainly looks like its aimed at chilling, intimidating and punishing the press.
For its part, theTimesresponded to Baldonis suit, saying, We plan to vigorously defend against the lawsuit.
The role of an independent news organization is to follow the facts where they lead.
Our story was meticulously and responsibly reported.
TheTimessaid, We plan to vigorously defend against the lawsuit.
