Gwyneth Paltrow walks into a courtroom for her trial, Friday, March 24, 2023, in Park City, Utah, where she is accused in a lawsuit of crashing into a skier during a family ski vacation in 2016, leaving him with brain damage and four broken ribs.
Rick Baumer/AP
hide caption
caption toggle
Rick Baumer/AP
Gwyneth Paltrow walks into a courtroom for her trial, Friday, March 24, 2023, in Park City, Utah, where she is accused in a lawsuit of crashing into a skier during a family ski vacation in 2016, leaving him with brain damage and four broken ribs.
Rick Baumer/AP
Actress Gwyneth Paltrow took the stand in a Park City courtroom Friday to testify in a trial related to a 2016 skiing accident in Utah.
Paltrow is accused of crashing into Terry Sanderson, a 76-year-old retired optometrist — causing several serious injuries and then abandoning him while the two were skiing on a beginner slope at Deer Valley Resort seven years ago.
Paltrow took the stand shortly before 3 p.m. local time and was questioned by Sanderson’s attorney, Christine VanOrman. She is the last to testify in the trial since it began four days ago.
The actress and Goop founder said on the day of the collision with Sanderson, she was skiing with her two children, now-husband Brad Falchuk and his two children. The collision happened on the first day of their trip to the resort, Paltrow said.
Testifying that the crash shocked her at first, Paltrow said she worried she had been raped.
“There was a body pressing against me and a very strange grunting noise,” she said. “My brain was trying to figure out what was going on.”
In her testimony, the actress said she and her children were at a skiing lesson on the day of the crash. Paltrow reiterated her claim that Sanderson climbed directly into her back and caused the accident.
“He hit me in the back, yes, that’s exactly what happened,” she said as attorneys read her version of events from the deposition.
Gwyneth Paltrow sits in court during an objection from her attorney during her trial, Friday, March 24, 2023, in Park City, Utah. Paltrow is accused in a lawsuit of crashing into a skier during a family ski vacation in 2016, leaving him with brain damage and four broken ribs.
Rick Baumer/AP
hide caption
caption toggle
Rick Baumer/AP
Gwyneth Paltrow sits in court during an objection from her attorney during her trial, Friday, March 24, 2023, in Park City, Utah. Paltrow is accused in a lawsuit of crashing into a skier during a family ski vacation in 2016, leaving him with brain damage and four broken ribs.
Rick Baumer/AP
Sanderson first filed suit in 2019, nearly three years after the hillside collision. He has since claimed the accident left him with multiple injuries, including a brain injury, four broken ribs and emotional damage. He also claimed that Paltrow left the scene without giving him her name or contact information or seeking help.
Paltrow countersued Sanderson in 2019, claiming he skied her.
In the original version of the lawsuit filed, Sanderson sought $3.1 million in damages, KSL.com reported. However, in May 2022, Third Circuit Judge Kent Holmberg dismissed some of Sanderson’s claims against Paltrow, ruling that it was not a “hit-and-run ski accident,” according to the news outlet.
Paltrow filed her own counter-lawsuit about a month after Sanderson in 2019. In the lawsuit, she recounted the events of the day, blaming him for the crash.
She described Sanderson being upstairs from her and her family when he suddenly slammed into her back, delivering a “full-body blow.” According to Paltrow, she was angry with Sanderson and he apologized.
Both sides want the other to cover their legal costs. Sanderson is now seeking $300,000 in damages. In return, Paltrow is seeking $1 in damages.
As the trial continues next week, Paltrow’s team is expected to call several witnesses, including medical experts, ski instructors and her two children, Moses and Apple.
The trial is due to resume on Monday morning and will be streamed live on YouTube.
NPR’s Vanessa Romo contributed to this report.