Eugenie Bouchard’s case against the USTA for damages dating back to her 2015 locker room fall that left her with a concussion and out of the U.S. Open went to court over the last two days at a Federal Court in Brooklyn to determine fault in the case.
More: Read Ben Rothenberg's Full Account of the Case in the New York Times Here
The Canadian claims that the USTA is at fault and is seeking significant damages.
Bouchard was the final witness for the plaintiff’s side on Thursday and took the stand for about an hour. According to Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times the USTA is arguing that Bouchard should have been aware of the fact that she was not allowed in the trainers’ room after hours, but Bouchard said that was not the case.
“They encourage us to go in when they’re not there,” Bouchard said. “It’s part of the locker room, and it’s our room where we can come and go as we please.”
Bouchard’s lawyer, Benedict Morelli, had informational and instructional materials on hand that showed no rules about when players can be in the trainers’ room.
Bouchard went into the details of her fall, and it was revealed that the USTA had used a new cleaning product, called Oasis 299, on that evening for the first time.
“I screamed, ‘Oh my God, it burns!’” Bouchard said in her testimony. ““It was all over me,” she said of the chemical.
No details of Bouchard’s concussion were discussed. The first phase of the trial is to determine who is at fault in the accident.
Reportedly Bouchard slipped and fell at 11 PM, but told the court “There are no specific hours” about when she could and couldn’t be in the trainers’ room.