u/Both_Barnacle_766

This question is based on old filings; it popped up because I am wondering (still) what may have happened on Friday May 1 to cause the mad scramble by team Lively to settle this suit.

Of course, it may or may not have anything to do with anything but....no one seems to have the 'smoking gun' (if there even is one) so, since the Jones v Abel case is ongoing (along with WP counterclaims) and Stephanie Jones still has to defend against the WP defamation claim, I figured it was worth a look.......

From the Jones docket, #219 is the declaration by Fritz regarding WP oppo to Jones's Motion for leave to Amend. The unsealed versions of documents were sent to Jones and required a certificate of service showing delivery to Jones on the docket. And of course Fritz filed the Cert on the docket, but WHY did Fritz send this stuff to Ferrer's attorney? It makes no sense.....to me at least..

Anybody have any idea???

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE of Sealed Memorandum in Opposition to Motion for Leave to Amend and accompanying documents served on Plaintiffs on January 8, 2026, and on non-party Isabela Ferrer on January 9, 2026. Document filed by Jennifer Abel, Justin Baldoni, Melissa Nathan, Wayfarer Studios LLC..(Fritz, Kevin) (Entered: 01/12/2026)

Garagos appeared on Meghyn Kelly's YouTube show earlier today.....I haven't seen this information yet, here or anywhere.......curious if anyone else has seen this "private mediation" theory?

But that's not the only reason for this post. See below a Reader's Digest version of this Garagos quote or check out the YT post...he thinks Blake's attorneys were afraid of a malpractice suit......

"The cynic in me, who as a practical matter will tell you what I think is happening here....when Blake Lively's case was gutted by Judge Liman.........he was unflinching in his criticism of her lawyers to the point where, it explains why, if what is being reported is true, as soon as they saw that order, as soon as her case was gutted, she had a monstrous legal malpractice case against her lawyers.

"How do her lawyers solve that problem? They immediately beg Baldoni's team to go into private mediation. You may say, 'well, how's that going to solve anything?'....there's a Supreme Court case in California that says...... 'if you go through private mediation you can't sue your lawyers for malpractice' so what this was was a very sophisticated legal strategy to insulate the big firm from getting sued for the tens of millions of dolllars for what what could have been argued was the, if you read Judge Liman's order, missteps by her lawyers. That's just the cynic in me explaining why all this happens..."