A jury began deliberating Thursday afternoon in over a 2016 ski collision at a Utah resort.
Attorneys for Gwyneth Paltrow and the 76-year-old man suing her described their clients in closing arguments as aggrieved victims participating in a years-long legal battle to take a stand for truth. The eight-person jury is tasked with weighing dueling versions of , making the other side culpable according to a skier responsibility code.
During closing arguments, Paltrow鈥檚 attorneys asked jurors to disregard the opposing side鈥檚 emotional pleas for sympathy of Terry Sanderson over the state of his relationships. The retired optometrist has said the collision left him with a concussion and four broken ribs. Paltrow鈥檚 legal team said that for their client, it would鈥檝e been easier to simply write a check, settle the lawsuit and put the crash behind her.
鈥淏ut what would that teach her children?鈥� attorney Steve Owens asked jurors Thursday.
Accompanying his remarks were high-resolution animations depicting Paltrow鈥檚 version of events, which have been shown throughout the trial in the Park City courtroom.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not about the money. It鈥檚 about ruining a very delicate time in a relationship where they were trying to get their kids together,鈥� Owens said.
The 2016 family trip to Deer Valley Resort was the first time Paltrow and her then-boyfriend Brad Falchuk brought their kids together in an effort to join families.
During the second week of trial, Paltrow, Sanderson and members of the jury all nodded along as attorneys repeated familiar narratives, denounced some witnesses鈥� claims and elevated others.
Sanderson is suing Paltrow over the events of that trip, and crashed into him, leaving him with four broken ribs and a concussion with symptoms that have lasted years beyond the collision.
After a judge dismissed his initial $3.1 million complaint, Sanderson amended and refiled the lawsuit seeking 鈥渕ore than $300,000鈥� 鈥� a threshold that that provides the opportunity to introduce the most evidence and depose the most witnesses allowed in civil court. In closing arguments, his attorneys estimated damages as more than $3.2 million.
Paltrow has countersued for a symbolic $1 and attorney fees, though her attorneys said in closing arguments that the crash had caused her far more damage.
Sanderson鈥檚 attorneys have cast doubt on Paltrow鈥檚 testimony and underscored the injuries that their client, Sanderson, has said changed the course of his life.
鈥淗e never returned home that night as the same man. Terry has tried to get off that mountain but he鈥檚 really still there,鈥� attorney Robert Sykes said in his closing argument. 鈥淧art of Terry will forever be on that Bandana run.鈥�
In a courtroom more packed Thursday than any other day of the trial, Sanderson鈥檚 attorneys delivered their arguments first. They argued it was unlikely that someone could ski between another skier鈥檚 two legs as Paltrow said. They also noted that she didn鈥檛 deny watching her kids skiing the moment of the crash.
Paltrow鈥檚 attorneys took a two-pronged approach, both arguing that the actor-turned-lifestyle influencer didn鈥檛 cause the accident and that its effects aren鈥檛 as bad as Sanderson claims. They鈥檝e painted him as an 鈥渙bsessed鈥� man pushing 鈥渦tter B.S.鈥� claims against someone whose fame makes them vulnerable to unfair, frivolous lawsuits.
In their closing arguments, Sanderson鈥檚 team also noted how the man claiming to be the sole eyewitness testified to seeing Paltrow hit their client. Though they鈥檝e tapped into themes including the power of fame throughout the trial, they said that the case ultimately wasn鈥檛 about celebrity, but simply damages.
Sanderson testified that he had continued to pursue damages seven years after the accident because the cascading events that followed 鈥� his post-concussion symptoms and the accusation that he sued to exploit Paltrow鈥檚 celebrity 鈥� added insult to injury.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the purpose: to make me regret this lawsuit. It鈥檚 the pain of trying to sue a celebrity,鈥� he said on Wednesday in response to a question from his attorney about Paltrow鈥檚 team probing his personal life, medical records and extensive post-crash international travel itinerary.
Though both sides have marshaled significant resources to emerge victorious, the verdict could end up being remembered as an afterthought dwarfed by the worldwide attention the trial has attracted. The amount of money at stake pales in comparison to the typical legal costs of a multiyear lawsuit, private security detail and expert witness-heavy trial.
Among the most bombshell testimony has been from Paltrow and Sanderson. On Friday members of the jury were riveted when Paltrow said on the stand that she initially thought she was being 鈥渧iolated鈥� when the collision began. Three days later Sanderson gave an entirely different account, saying she ran into him and sent him 鈥渁bsolutely flying.鈥�
The trial has also shone a spotlight on Park City, known primarily as a ski resort that welcomes celebrities like Paltrow for each year鈥檚 .
Local residents have increasingly filled the courtroom gallery throughout the trial. They鈥檝e nodded along as lawyers and witnesses have referenced local landmarks like Montage Deer Valley, the ski-side hotel-spa where Paltrow got a massage after the collision. At times they have appeared captivated by Paltrow鈥檚 reactions to the proceedings, while at others they have mirrored the jury, whose endurance has been tested by hours of jargon-dense medical testimony.
鈥擲am Metz, The Associated Press
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