Gwyneth Paltrow Is Dressing Brilliantly for the Court of Public Opinion

Throughout the trial, Paltrow has kept up a steady run of earthy sweaters, neat collared shirts, gold necklaces, ankle-length skirts, and lug-soled boots from other luxury labels including Proenza Schouler and Prada, plus at least a couple pieces from her own brand, G. Label by Goop. 

Leah Krouse, an art historian and fashion analyst based in New York City, has been cataloging Paltrow’s courthouse style on Twitter, identifying the brands as though this were a red-carpet fashion roundup.

“I feel Gwyneth’s day-to-day style exhibits a casual but classic appeal that incorporates silhouettes both stereotypically feminine and masculine,” Krouse tells GQ via Twitter DM, likening Paltrow to the beloved former Céline designer and menswear icon Phoebe Philo. “When thinking of menswear, the first things that come to mind are structural suits, blazers, tailored pants, very much businesswear—it’s what we’ve all been taught. Sharp lines mean business. And that’s what Paltrow’s shown us so far.”

“The Cucinelli blazer is a perfect example—strong shoulders, rolled up sleeves, deep-V to reveal thousands worth of jewelry,” Krouse continues. “She’s got the closet every attorney and woman wants—elegant, elevated, and educated.”

It’s well documented that defendants’ courtroom wardrobes (and how put-together they look) can factor into how judges or jurors gauge their guilt. Trials are also matters of public record, and cases that involve people of public interest are usually heavily photographed—and now, dissected on Twitter and Instagram. Though celebrities have long consulted professionals to achieve their desired courtroom looks, it’s a typically unpublicized practice. But a new level was unlocked in 2019, when the New York criminal attorney Todd Spodek told GQ that he’d hired celebrity stylist Anastasia Walker to dress his client, the “SoHo Grifter” known as Anna Delvey, allowing her to swap her Rikers-issued jumpsuit for Miu Miu dresses to stand trial. (It’s worth noting that Spodek only revealed this after GQ‘s former fashion critic Rachel Tashjian noticed Walker had liked a post on an Instagram account chronicling Sorokin’s court appearances.)