Blake Lively is gearing up for the trial against her “It Ends With Us” director and co-star Justin Baldoni by hiring the same high-profile attorney who represented Jeffrey Epstein’s victims.
Sigrid McCawley — a longtime advocate of Epstein victims, including the late Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide last year — confirmed to People that she has joined the ranks of Lively’s “world class legal team,” alongside Mike Gottlieb and Esra Hudson.
McCawley will primarily handle communications with the public and press on key matters of the case.
Lively in late 2024 accused Baldoni of having sexually harassed her during the making of “It Ends With Us,” and of waging a retaliatory smear campaign.
Baldoni, who has denied all of Lively’s claims, previously filed a $400 million defamation suit against the actress, her husband, Ryan Reynolds, and publicist Leslie Sloane, the latter of whom has also been represented by McCawley. The filing was later tossed, as was Baldoni’s $250 million libel lawsuit against The New York Times for its coverage of Lively’s allegations.
In a statement to People, McCawley said the case “at its core is about a woman who was subjected to a hostile work environment and is being attacked for standing up to protect herself and other female co-workers.”
The New York trial is currently scheduled to begin on May 18 after being postponed from March.
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