Gwyneth Paltrow was questioned about her relationship with Taylor Swift during the trial in the case of an accident on a ski slope.
Paltrow spoke yesterday (March 24) as part of a civil lawsuit alleging that the actor seriously injured a man in a skiing accident in Utah in 2016.
The lawsuit concerns a collision at a ski resort in Park City, where Terry Sanderson claims that Paltrow collided with him and “knocked him down hard, knocking him out.”
Sanderson claims the incident left him with “permanent traumatic brain injury, 4 broken ribs, pain, suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, emotional distress and disfigurement,” and is suing Paltrow for $300,000 (£245,163).
Paltrow is countersuing Sanderson for $1 (80 pence), the same amount Taylor Swift received in the case against the DJ accused of sexually assaulting her. According to The Guardian, the $1 awarded to Swift was described by her lawyers as “a symbolic value that is immeasurable for all women in this situation.”
Speaking yesterday, Paltrow said: “This is the real dollar I’m asking for. This is symbolic, because in fact the damage would have been greater.”
Sanderson’s lawyer, Kristin VanOrman, then asked Paltrow if she got the idea from Swift’s case. “I think I said [when you asked me] that I wasn’t familiar with [Swift’s trial], but I’ve been since,” Paltrow replied [via The Independent] before being asked if she was “good friends” with Swift.
“I wouldn’t say we’re good friends, we’re friendly; I’ve taken my kids to one of her concerts before, but we don’t talk very often,” Paltrow said.
“Have you ever given Ms. Swift personal, intimate gifts for Christmas,” VanOrman asked, apparently referring to a Paltrow’s Goop brand ad in 2021 in which she put a vibrator in a bag addressed to Swift. However, her lawyer questioned the relevance of the question, which Judge Kent Holmberg withstood before Paltrow could answer.
During the trial, the actor claimed that Sanderson really crashed into her. “I was skiing, and two skis got between my skis, spreading my legs, and then a body pressed against me, and there was a very strange grunt,” Paltrow said.
“My brain was trying to make sense of what was happening. I thought: “Is this a prank? Is someone doing something perverse? It’s really very strange.”
“I felt insulted when someone pressed their whole body against my back,” she added.
The case will resume next week.
