Santa Fe, New Mexico - A judge has ruled that Alec Baldwin will not have to give sworn evidence in a civil lawsuit until after his involuntary manslaughter trial.

The lawsuit, filed by three crew members from the film set Rust, claims the star and his production company El Dorado Pictures caused "emotional distress" as a result of negligence following the death of

She was killed on the western film set in October 2021 after a prop gun held by Baldwin went off in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

On Tuesday, Judge Bryan Biedscheid "partially granted" a motion filed by Baldwin's lawyers to "stay the action" – meaning a temporary suspension of legal proceedings – pending the resolution of his criminal case.

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"There will be no depositions of Mr Baldwin individually or related to El Dorado Pictures between now and the conclusion of the criminal trial in this matter," the judge ruled, during the virtual hearing.

However, the judge said he is not "staying" written discovery which "moves the case forward" and is "appropriate under the circumstances," meaning parties can continue to gather evidence to use in this case.

The ruling comes after Baldwin was re-charged with involuntary manslaughter in January this year, and will face a trial beginning on July 10.

Before the judge's decision, Baldwin's lawyer Robert Schwartz said lawyers for those bringing the civil action were trying to "create a record in which a jury could draw negative inferences" against him if he gave his civil deposition.

Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty last week of involuntary manslaughter after a two-week trial.

Baldwin, who starred as lead actor and co-producer of the film, was pointing a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal when the weapon went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza.