Justin Baldoni’s lawyers have responded after most of Blake Lively’s claims against the director were dismissed by a federal judge on Thursday.

Judge Lewis Liman threw out 10 of the 13 claims that Lively had made against Baldoni and others, including allegations of sexual harassment, conspiracy and defamation.

Bryan Freedman, Baldoni’s lawyer, described the defendants as “very good people who have not engaged in this sexual harassment as alleged” in a statement to Associated Press. “It is gratifying to see that the courts ruling confirms what the legal team believed from day one,” he added.

“The defendants were not afraid of the truth,” Freedman said in a separate statement to TMZ. “The plan was not only to speak the truth but to also show that same truth over and over again through the presentation of actual evidence. Neither Justin Baldoni, [It Ends With Us lead producer] Jamey Heath nor any of the other defendants have engaged in the sexual harassment of Blake Lively.”

In a 152-page opinion, Liman said that Lively’s claims must be viewed in the context of the film that she and Baldoni were working on. It Ends With Us is a domestic abuse drama that features a number of intimate scenes between Lively and Baldoni’s characters.

Liman wrote: “Lively claims that during filming, Baldoni leaned in and gestured as if he was intending to kiss her, and that he kissed her forehead, rubbed his face and mouth against her neck, put his thumb to her mouth and flicked her lower lip, caressed her, and leaned into her neck, saying ‘it smells good.’”

However, Liman said, Baldoni was “acting in the scene”.

He added: “Creative artists, no less than comedy room writers, must have some amount of space to experiment within the bounds of an agreed script without fear of being held liable for sexual harassment.

“There is no question that this conduct might support a hostile work environment claim if it occurred on the factory floor or in the executive suite. But in all sexual harassment cases, the court must carefully consider the social context in which particular behaviour occurs and is experienced by its target,” Liman continued.

Liman additionally determined that Lively was not entitled to bring sexual harassment claims against Baldoni because she was working on It Ends With Us as an independent contractor rather than an employee.

The decision leaves Lively’s case against her It Ends With Us director and co-star with a slimmer focus, and will go to trial next month on the basis of what Lively alleges was a negative retaliatory campaign.

After rumors of a rift between Baldoni and Lively began to surface following the release of It Ends With Us in August 2024, Baldoni and lead producer Jamey Heath hired a crisis PR team. Lively says that their goal was to smear her reputation.

Lively’s attorney Sigrid McCawley said in a statement to the Guardian: “For Blake Lively, the greatest measure of justice is that the people and the playbook behind these coordinated digital attacks have been exposed and are already being held accountable by other women they’ve targeted.”

McCawley also responded to Liman’s dismissal. “Sexual harassment isn’t going forward, not because the defendants did nothing wrong, but because the court determined Blake Lively was an independent contractor, not an employee.”

The Guardian has reached out to lawyers for Lively and Baldoni for additional comment. A trial is scheduled for 18 May.