Gwyneth Paltrow trial: Why did the US actress offer ‘treats’ to courtroom staff?

The incident happened in 2016 on a beginners’ slope in Park City, Utah. Both parties claim they were crashed into from behind, which would mean, under Utah law, the other party was responsible for the crash.

Mr Sanderson, who was left with concussion and broken ribs, is suing her for $300,000 (£240,000). A previous judge threw out Mr Sanderson’s earlier $3.1m [£2.54m] lawsuit and ruled that he was not entitled to punitive damages.

It was not specified what the “treats” for bailiffs would be, but Ms Paltrow’s legal team said they wanted to thank them for being “helpful”.

Ahead of testimony on the third day of the civil trial, Ms Paltrow’s lawyer Steve Owens said: "Private security for my client wanted to bring in treats for the bailiffs for how helpful they've been."

He added: "So, I wanted to do that transparently and see if there are any objections," he added.

Lawyers for Mr Sanderson objected. Judge Kent Holmberg replied: "OK, there's an objection, so thank you, but no thank you."

He said either party could "decide to do that later" if they wished. Mr Sanderson’s daughter on Thursday told how she believed her father had been affected by the accident.

"He was sitting in a chair by the window and I almost expected drool to be coming out of his mouth," she said.

"First of all, he wasn't engaged with anybody. He had kind of taken himself to a remote corner and that was my first real kind of slap in the face of, like, something's terribly wrong."

Ms Paltrow is seeking $1m [£820,000] in damages, plus legal fees. She is expected to give evidence today. Her children, Moses and Apple, are also expected to testify.