The smile that says she knows she’s winning? Gwyneth Paltrow smirks while leaving court in Park City after her lawyers undermined case of man suing her over ski accident
- The actress and lifestyle guru grinned as she exited court in Park City on Wednesday following the seventh day of her ski accident trial
- Paltrow is being sued by a retired optometrist who claims the actress hit him on the slopes in 2016, causing permanent brain damage
- On Thursday, the jury will hear closing arguments from both sides and retire to begin deliberation
Gwyneth Paltrow was seen smirking as she departed the Park City court after another long day of trial in the ongoing case of a 2016 ski crash -which may indicate she feels things are going her way.
The actress and lifestyle guru sported a chic long navy overcoat over a black outfit with classic Ray Ban aviators and a faint grin on Wednesday as she exited the building ahead of the final scheduled day of trial.
The seventh day of the case ended without Paltrow’s attorneys calling the actress’s husband Brad Falchuk to the stand.
On Thursday, court will resume with closing arguments, after which the jury will retire to consider their verdict.
The actress and lifestyle guru sported a long blue overcoat, black outfit, classic Ray Ban aviators and a faint grin as she exited the building ahead of the final scheduled day of trial on Thursday
Retired optometrist Terry Sanderson is suing Paltrow for $300,000 for allegedly crashing into him from behind in 2016. Paltrow has countered the civil suit for the amount of $1, claiming she is innocent.
The 76-year-old retired doctor claims he suffered four broken ribs and a permanent brain injury that has dramatically changed his personality for the worse.
In the courtroom Wednesday, Ms Paltrow, 50, wore all black and her blonde hair hung loose around her face.
Sanderson doubled down on his claim he had changed dramatically after the accident, telling court: ‘Looking back on the time, I was determined to prove I did not have mental issues. I found it was like flipping a switch. It was like I was on the light side and now I’m on the dark side.’
Restating his version of the crash, he said: ‘I was just gliding down the slope, not making turns, then the silence was broken by a hysterical scream. The best hysterical scream you’ve ever heard.’
He added: ‘I consider it a hit and run when you run into something or somebody and leave the scene. There was no one there when I woke up – if the person who did it isn’t there when you wake up, it’s a hit and run.’
Asked if he regretted bringing the case, he said: ‘It’s a pain trying to sue a celebrity. I felt like I was seriously injured and then I had so many insults added to that and layered on.
‘This is an issue that someone needs to be accountable for and if they don’t not going to be accountable, they’re going to do it again.’
At one point, The retiree’s attorney Kristin Van Orman asked the 5ft 5in Sanderson to step down from the witness box to prove he is not ‘a very large man’ as Paltrow had described the person who hit her.
Sanderson was also grilled on a number of vacation pictures he had posted to his Facebook account, including trips to Morocco, Switzerland, Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Thailand and the Canary Islands – all of which had occurred after the accident.
Another picture showed him at a rock concert later in 2016, visiting a waterfall, doing a Zumba class, enjoying a drinking session with friends and skiing after the collision in 2017.
He was even shown riding a camel in Morocco and posing in front of a temple in Thailand.
In cross-examination, Sanderson claimed his travels had been encouraged by his therapist who told him to take the trips as ‘part of the healing process’.
In a shocking moment, Paltrow’s lawyer asked Sanderson whether or not he had described the actress as ‘King Kong’ or ‘Godzilla.’
‘Did you or did you not compare my client to King Kong coming out of the jungle?’
Sanderson did not dispute that he made the comment, but said: ‘I dispute my intentions.’
‘I meant to say King Kong just chased someone out of the jungle,’ he said.
The defense said Sanderson’s daughter testified that he had referred to Paltrow as ‘Godzilla’ – something Sanderson said he does not remember.
Paltrow is seen exiting the Park City, Utah courthouse, where she was flanked by security
Paltrow sits next to her attorney in court on Wednesday
Attorneys for Terry Sanderson accused Deer Valley Resort in Utah of pandering to the actress because she was a ‘big spender’ who blew $8,980 (£7,300) on ski lessons for her children.
They claimed in court that the resort gave a ‘wink and a nod’ to her hitting Mr Sanderson by saying it was his fault in a report from the crash scene.
The allegations were denied by a manager for Deer Valley, and the ski instructor who was first on the scene.
Also addressing the court this week, Irving Scher, a biomechanical expert, said that Paltrow’s claim that she was hit by Sanderson was ‘consistent with the law of physics’.
But the idea that Sanderson was the one who was smashed into from behind didn’t meet that standard, Dr Scher said.
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