Justin Baldoni's Attorney Disputes Blake Lively Settlement Claims

The settlement between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in their It Ends With Us lawsuit has sparked a new round of statements from both legal teams.

A joint announcement confirmed earlier this week that the former co-stars had reached a settlement agreement, ending the case before it proceeded to trial.

In response, Bryan Freedman, attorney for Baldoni, has offered his perspective on why the settlement was reached. "Part of the reason Blake settled is because she was scared to take the witness stand at trial. She did not want to face cross examination by anyone because that would require her to tell the truth," Freedman told TMZ.

The attorney outlined specific allegations he says contradict Lively's public statements. "Blake lied about telling Sony to destroy the dailies. She lied that she never told Colleen Hoover to unfollow Justin Baldoni. In her deposition, Colleen said Blake asked her to unfollow him. And there were more lies."

Freedman emphasized the financial outcome of the case, noting that Lively had originally filed a claim for $300 million. "Bottom line … Blake filed a claim for $300 million and she ended up with nothing. If this is a resounding victory, what does a defeat look like?" he stated.

The attorney also challenged Lively's stated motivations for pursuing the case. "If she's doing this for survivors of sexual assault and sexual harassment and retaliation as she says, then why don't you take the stand at trial and prove it to the world? A trial would have exposed her lies and the entire smear she was talking about in her interviews that she did."

Lively's legal team responded with a brief statement: "I guess he's no longer 'ecstatic' about the settlement."

Earlier on the same day, Lively's lawyers had claimed a legal victory in connection with the case.

Despite the settlement, additional legal matters remain pending. Court documents indicate that Lively is pursuing a separate motion for attorneys' fees and additional damages under California law. A judge will decide this motion, and according to filings, neither party will be permitted to appeal the ruling once issued.