Justin Baldoni scored a small win over Blake Lively after a federal judge denied her bid to seek legal sanctions against his lawyer, Bryan Freedman.

Justin Baldoni scores win over Blake Lively

According to court documents filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Lively’s legal team had asked the court to sanction Baldoni’s attorney, Freedman, over comments he allegedly made about her in the media, TMZ reported. As per a People report, Lively’s lawyers argued that Freedman’s public statements could potentially influence the jury pool ahead of the trial. However, the request was denied by Judge Lewis J. Liman.

Judge denied Blake Lively’s sanction

As per reports, the judge noted that the statements cited by Lively’s team were made nearly a year before the scheduled trial date, and hence, did not demonstrate that the remarks were “substantially likely to prejudice.”

Blake Lively’s team keep lawsuit active

Meanwhile, in a separate filing submitted Thursday, Lively’s attorneys referenced a recent ruling by the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, arguing that it supports keeping her lawsuit active. Quoting the ruling, Lively’s legal team wrote that dismissing a complaint at that stage “would hardly serve the efficient or just resolution of disputes” when evidence collected during discovery could support the claims.Her lawyers maintain that the court should assess the case based on documents and testimony already obtained during discovery, rather than focusing only on the allegations outlined in the initial complaint.

Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni to go to trial in May

Lively and Baldoni’s legal distupe is ongoing. Both actors are expected to testify if the matter proceeds to trial, which is currently scheduled to begin on May 18. Their efforts to settle the lawsuit before going to trial were not fruitful during their court hours long court appearance last month.