A federal judge on Thursday granted Blake Lively‘s request to limit the disclosure of certain sensitive information in the course of litigation against her “It Ends With Us” director and co-star Justin Baldoni.
Lively has sued Baldoni for sexual harassment and for retaliation, while Baldoni has sued her and her husband Ryan Reynolds for defamation.
Judge Lewis Liman agreed Thursday to Lively’s request to limit certain discovery material to “attorneys eyes only.” Given that the case involves celebrities and their publicists, Lively’s attorney had warned that some information could be leaked if the attorneys shared it with their clients.
The information that only the attorneys can see includes “trade secrets,” such as business and marketing plans and ideas for upcoming creative projects. It also includes the clients’ security measures, medical information and “highly personal and intimate information about third parties.”
“These cases involve both business competitors and allegations of sexual harm,” the judge wrote. “Discovery will necessarily include confidential and sensitive business and personal information. The risk of disclosure is great.”
The judge noted that even if sensitive information is not leaked to the press, it could easily circulate by “gossip and innuendo to those in the tight artistic community in a position to do harm to one or the other.”
Baldoni’s attorneys agreed that sensitive information should be kept confidential, but objected to the idea that the attorneys could not share it with their clients. They argued that the additional layer of secrecy will make it more cumbersome to litigate the case, and that the parties will inevitably wind up back in front of the judge objecting to each others’ confidentiality designations.
Liman did not grant everything that Lively’s attorneys asked for, noting that her request to limit any material “likely” to cause some injury was “very broad.” The judge narrowed the provision to include material “highly likely” to cause “significant” injury.
The judge argued that the heightened level of secrecy will make the discovery process more efficient.
“The Moving Parties have shown good cause for a limited AEO provision and have shown that entering such a provision now is critical to the just and speedy (if not necessarily “inexpensive”) determination of the case,” he wrote.
At a hearing last week, the judge also noted that the case will inherently involve the disclosure of sensitive and damaging information about the parties, assuming it goes forward.
“If you sue a high-profile person in this industry, it’s going to get picked up by the press,” he said. “The stuff that’s highly relevant is going to end up being disclosed.”
A spokesperson for Lively applauded the decision.
“Today, the Court rejected the Wayfarer Parties’ objections and entered the protections needed to ensure the free flow of discovery material without any risk of witness intimidation or harm to any individual’s security,” the spokesperson said. “With this order in place, Ms. Lively will move forward in the discovery process to obtain even more of the evidence that will prove her claims in Court.”
From Variety US