- Holly Honderich and Sam Cabral
- BBC News
image source, Reuters
Gwyneth Paltrow was victorious in the trial for which she was sued in the US.
American actress Gwyneth Paltrow was cleared of guilt for a 2015 accident she had while skiing and for which a 76-year-old man sued her for “life-changing” damages.
A jury determined this Thursday that the actress had no responsibility, so must not pay $300,000 in damages that the plaintiff requested.
The retired optometrist Terry Sanderson76, alleged that Paltrow collided with him, leaving him with “a brain injury, four broken ribs and other serious injuries.”
The 50-year-old actress, on the other hand, blamed him for the accident and countersued him for $1 plus legal fees.
Upon hearing the verdict, Paltrow did not show any noticeable reaction. He just looked straight ahead and seemed to nod slightly. He then left the courtroom and declined interviews.
But he did stop briefly to talk to Sanderson. “Wish you all the best”, He told him, according to the retiree, who answered him “thank you dear”,
Speaking to the media, attorney Steve Owens said his client “has a record of defending her convictions.”
“This situation was no different and she will continue to stand up for what is right,” he said.
Sanderson, for his part, called the verdict “very disappointing” and maintained that he was the victim to the injured result.
image source, Reuters
After the verdict, Paltrow had a few words for Sanderson.
opposing stories
The two-week trial had dozens of witnesses presenting opposing statements about who crashed into whom.
After three hours of deliberation, the jury unanimously found Sanderson guilty of the incident and awarded the $1 payment to Paltrow.
According to Sanderson’s account, the Oscar-winning actress crashed him on a beginner’s slope at Deer Valley Resort in Park City, a ski resort near Salt Lake City.
He claimed that Paltrow walked away while he fell unconscious in the snowwith broken ribs. The accident also caused life-changing brain trauma, he claimed in his indictment.
image source, Reuters
Videos of the incident were shown during the trial.
Taking the stand, Paltrow offered a completely different version.
Pointed at Sanderson for having descended directly on her while the actress went down the slope with her two children.
“I thought: ‘Is this a joke? Is someone doing something malicious? This is very, very strange,'” he said in his testimony.
In contradiction to Sanderson, claimed the man was conscious when she skied away and that he even apologized to her.
Paltrow’s lawyers sought to discredit Sanderson’s claim that the accident ruined her health. They presented a long list of trips thatWhat did the retiree do after the accident? to South America, Europe and Morocco.
And they accused Sanderson of trying to profit from his client’s fame. They showed an email he sent to his daughters shortly after the accident in which he told them: “I’m famous.”
The case, which generated expectation in the US and which had dramatic testimonies, revolved around the etiquette followed by skiers. Both parties claimed they had the right of way.
But the jury ultimately decided in favor of Paltrow.
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