The battles between Justin Baldoni’s promotional team continued at full speed on Tuesday when, after a breach of contract and defamation suit filed in New York that morning, text messages obtained by TheWrap show that RWA Communications founder and CEO Jennifer Abel (a former partner at Jonesworks) resigned from Stephanie Jones’ firm last summer over its founder’s “bullying” of colleagues amid the high-profile smear campaign against “It Ends With Us” star Blake Lively.
The July 10 text messages and termination letter reviewed by TheWrap, all of which can be read below, appear to contradict claims in Tuesday’s lawsuit that Abel was fired while conspiring to “steal” Jones’ clients and tarnish her reputation.
Abel left the company in July earlier announcing the launch of RWA Communications four months ago. In Tuesday’s lawsuit, which names as defendants Abel, crisis communications director Melissa Nathan, Baldoni and his Wayfarer Studios production company, Jones alleges that Abel stole “documents and client information while secretly contacting Jonesworks clients to pave the way for her departure.” Abel’s phone was voluntarily returned “in the presence of an employment attorney,” according to the lawsuit, which adds that messages highlighting the smear campaign in question have been “forensically extracted directly from the company’s phone” and “have been preserved in their original state.”
Jones’ lawsuit further alleged that “since being fired from Jonesworks, Abel has continued to attack Jones within the industry, using her proven playbook to preemptively discredit any source that might shed light on her own misdeeds.”
“Abel falsely represented to other participants in the public relations industry that Jones attempted to distribute printed text messages purporting to be from Abel in retaliation for Abel’s resignation,” the lawsuit said. “She has also tried to point the finger at Jones as a cover for her own role in the campaign against Lively going public. But Jones has never processed any text messages and has no reason to.”
Abel claims her exit from the company was voluntary on July 10, according to a person with knowledge of her thinking. She quit because of what she categorized as “bullying” behavior by Jones toward colleague Matthew Mitchell, her partner on accounts for Wayfarer Studios, Baldoni and “the majority of other clients she also references in her texts” after her departure, the person said for TheWrap.
However, a person close to Jones with knowledge of the timeline told TheWrap that Abel’s last day after stepping down on July 10 was set for August 23, two weeks after the release of “It Ends With Us.” Jones then fired Abel on August 21 after learning of her alleged attempts to poach clients.
“Jennifer tendered her resignation in July and had agreed to stay on until August 23. She was terminated early after Jonesworks discovered she had stolen over 70 documents,” the person said.
IN a Monday statement to The Hollywood ReporterAbel’s attorney Bryan Freedman, whose client list also includes Penske Media, acknowledged that Aug. 21 was his client’s last day at Jonesworks: “Our investigation has determined that on Aug. 21, Jonesworks used an attorney and security guard to take confidential possession of the Wayfarers. information through confiscation of Jen Abel’s phone. We are continuing to investigate the use of the confidential information.”
Apparent text correspondence between Abel and Jones and, separately, Abel’s fiance and Jones’ husband discussing Abel’s resignation can be seen below:
The person close to Abel told TheWrap Tuesday that this morning’s defamation suit was “retaliatory behavior” because customers Wayfarer and Baldoni left Jonesworks for Abel’s venture — “They weren’t ‘stolen’ and neither were any other customers.” Other clients who left with Abel, the individual added, were longtime clients from her years before she joined Jonesworks and one Abel “had personally signed on at Jonesworks who had no relationship with Stephanie Jones.”
In email correspondence obtained by TheWrap that appears to be Abel’s resignation letter to Jones, the former Jonesworks partner describes an atmosphere where “things keep escalating between the two of us” and that she “constantly felt like I’m letting you down.”
“I take full responsibility for my part in all this. I’m not proud of how emotional I get in these situations, or how I choose to walk away when I feel like we’re not making progress in our conversations,” Abel wrote. “I know I have things to work on as well with my communication, and this whole situation has been a good opportunity for me to learn about how I need to improve how I get my point across.”
It’s unclear what high-intensity work conditions Abel’s letter referred to, but the termination, dated a month before Sony Pictures’ Aug. 9 release of “It Ends With Us,” consistent with the broader timeline of assembly tensions and what at the time were categorized as “creative differences” between Baldoni and Lively.
Read Abel’s resignation letter in full below:
Hi Steph—
First of all, I wanted to say thank you for the conversation we had a couple of days ago. I know it wasn’t easy, and I’m so grateful that you trust me enough to be vulnerable, honest, and for us to have a real conversation about our working relationship. I know you’re going through a lot right now with work, personal life and your health and the last thing I want to do is add to that — I hope you know me well enough by now that no matter how dramatic I can be ( ) I really strive to make work life easier for you and take as much off your plate as possible.
Since I resigned, I’ve thought a lot about what I want with my career. I may have quit due to unforeseen circumstances, but the past two weeks I’ve really taken a step back to reevaluate what I want for the next step. I truly believe that everything happens for a reason, and I really wanted to reflect on why things keep escalating between the two of us and why I kept feeling like I was letting you down. I take full responsibility for my part in all of this. I’m not proud of how emotional I get in these situations, or the way I choose to walk away when I feel like we’re not making progress in our conversations. I know I have things to work on with my communication as well, and this whole situation has been a good opportunity for me to learn how I need to improve how I get my point across.
With all that said, the fact remains – I respect you immensely. I feel so grateful for the opportunities you have given me with your premier clients and how you have elevated me as your partner. I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to be in many of the rooms I’ve been in without you opening the door. This company you have built is exceptional, and I hold our teams in the highest regard. I know I didn’t do it myself, but I’m proud of what I’ve contributed to your LA office and the team I’ve built and managed over the past four years, along with the new clients and opportunities I’ve acquired.
I feel it is necessary at this point that I continue to move forward with my resignation. I say this with a heavy heart, but with the excitement that I can take everything I have learned from you as I begin this new path with my own business. I know this road won’t be easy, but I hope I can keep you in my life as a mentor, a friend, and a close confidant because I truly consider you family and would be lost without your support. I want to assure you however I can, that unlike those who have burned you in the past, there is not an ounce of malice here. I’ve left a company before with grace and with my relationships intact, and that’s what I fully plan and hope for. In order to plan, I must stick to my previously communicated end date of August 23rdrd which I hope is plenty of time to ensure a smooth transition for everyone.
Thank you again for the most amazing time here at JW and I look forward to our relationship continuing in this new capacity.
Thanks again for understanding and for your support — With LOVE!
