Kim Kardashian arrived at the courthouse in central Paris earlier this month composed, collected, and dripping in an estimated $8 million price of jewellery. The ensemble was a daring alternative, contemplating she was showing at her personal theft trial, over one of the most audacious celebrity heists in trendy history.
She arrived alongside her mom Kris Jenner to testify towards the so-called “grandpa robbers” (some suspects of their 60s and 70s, one of which died earlier than the case went to trial, whereas one other developed Alzheimer’s and was deemed unfit to face), who’re going through charges for armed robbery, kidnapping and conspiracy after allegedly stealing $10 million price of money and jewellery from the A-lister, who was held at gunpoint, throughout a visit to Paris in October 2016.
At the trial, Kardashian was bespectacled in Alaïa sun shades, her type accentuated in a classic John Galliano black skirt-suit with a plunging neckline and sizeable side-slit. Kardashian’s neck alone was encircled with over 52 carats — courtesy of a tear-drop-shaped necklace from Samer Halimeh — which she paired with diamond earrings, a 4.55 carat Repossi diamond over-the-ear cuff and a white gold and diamond pavé model by Briony Raymond.
The placing Halimeh piece felt like a revenge necklace signalling Kardashian’s distinctive skill to simply substitute thousands and thousands of {dollars}’ price of treasured jewels. To some on social media, this served as a gauché reminder of seemingly bottomless wealth. But for NYU vogue regulation professor and “The Laws of Style” creator Douglas Hand, it was an emblem of defiance.
“Her choice of jewelry really underscored the fact that she wants to announce that she’s reclaiming her power after this traumatic event,” Hand instructed NCS over the cellphone. “If I were advising her from both a business perspective and a legal perspective, I think you’d want to signal that you are a survivor.”
The energy of a rigorously thought-about courtroom outfit ought to by no means be underestimated. In 2023, when Gwyneth Paltrow was taken to court docket for a private damage declare over a snowboarding accident, she wore a collection of understated, luxurious appears to be like — together with a loden coat from The Row, pants by Proenza Schouler, boots by Celine and a quantity of her personal branded sweaters — that swayed the online demographic in her favor. Several followers took to social media to rate her looks out of ten, whereas some even sought to recreate them at residence.
What may have simply grow to be a brand-damaging episode — Paltrow’s costly style in ski instructors and her choice to have a post-crash therapeutic massage have been key parts of the prosecution — surprisingly turned a masterclass in the mushy energy of vogue. Ultimately, the jury unanimously sided with Paltrow and discovered her not liable.
Similarly, when creator E. Jean Carroll appeared in court docket to testify towards US President Trump in 2023, accusing him of sexually abusing her in a Bergdorf Goodman retailer in 1996, the author curated a collection of decorous earth-toned tailor-made clothes, good jackets and off-white overcoats, which introduced her as the antithesis of the “whack job” Trump had tried to label her. Despite denying the allegations and publicly insulting Carroll for making the declare, Trump was found liable for sexual assault battery and Carroll obtained $5 million in damages. (A yr later, she was awarded another $83.3 million for defamation.)
Elsewhere, celebrities together with Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B have enlisted their common crimson carpet stylists to assist create courtroom appears to be like that also really feel genuine to them: sharp tailor-made fits (worn shirtless, nonetheless) with hair lower into razor-sharp bobs.
According to Hand, the consideration that goes into courtroom garments isn’t merely an train in vainness. “(These outfits) are pretty choreographed by any well-advised litigant,” he stated. “For high profile litigants, courtroom dress is usually an attempt to dispel any appearance of wrongdoing, whether you’re charged with a crime or you’re embroiled in some dispute or a nasty divorce.”
The proper ensemble also can assist promise “some degree of credibility,” added Hand. This appears to be the technique of music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs, who during his ongoing trial on federal charges of sex trafficking and racketeering has prevented all iterations of masculine power-suiting and as a substitute opted for mushy sweaters, glasses and undyed gray hair. The end result, some argue, is a curated picture that looks as if a far cry from the alleged crimes. “Your apparel choices speak before you do,” Hand added. “That’s incredibly important, particularly in a high stakes situation like a court of law.”
For virtually so long as celebrities have been breaking the regulation, they’ve not less than been dressing for the event. In 2002, Winona Ryder arrived at her shoplifting trial (she was accused of stealing greater than $5,500 of designer items from Saks Fifth Avenue) wearing a Marc Jacobs trompe l’oeil knit costume that has since gone down in vogue history. Her sartorial technique was clear: midi-skirts and clothes that have been elegant, prim and demure, worn with headbands for a youthful earnestness.
“How nice to see a defendant rise above the tried-and-true dark suit and opt for a more fashionable facade,” wrote Robin Givhan at the time, in a tongue-in-cheek report for the Washington Post. Unfortunately, irrespective of how a lot her hemline communicated sweetness and mild, Ryder was nonetheless discovered responsible and sentenced to 480 hours of neighborhood service, a $3,700 positive and 36 months of probation.
When rapper Lil’ Kim was on trial for perjury in 2004, she coordinated her tailor-made pinstripe go well with vest and slacks with these worn by her legal professional Mel Sachs. In reality, a number of of her courtroom appears to be like have been reportedly personally gifted by Marc Jacobs — a detailed pal of the musician — who offered her with modest sandy-colored fits and bouclé twin-sets.
But too heavy an emphasis on vogue also can backfire. When Martha Stewart was delivered to trial for insider buying and selling in 2004, her option to put on a mink stole and chestnut-colored Hermés Birkin bag sparked controversy. “The Birkin did little to promote the image of an approachable woman who has struggled up from humble roots,” wrote the New York Times that very same yr. “Instead, it cemented an image of her as a pampered fat cat seemingly willing to snatch money from an Average Joe Stockholder.”
Meanwhile, when Michael Jackson arrived at court docket in 2005 after being accused of baby molestation (he was later acquitted), the pop star confirmed up wearing flamboyant brocaded vests and dazzling waistcoat jewellery — very like what he wore on stage. Ideally, stated Hand, celebrities wish to intention for a “sober” outfit that feels “conservative to emphasize trustworthiness.” Anything else dangers sending a message of flagrance, which might bitter jurors quick.
Earlier this yr, the realms of vogue and regulation enforcement intertwined even additional when rapper A$AP Rocky appeared in a Los Angeles court docket going through expenses of two counts of felony assault, one with a firearm. Rocky, who not too long ago co-chaired the 2025 Met Gala, arrived at his trial trying strikingly dapper. His gabardine trench coat, wool chiné pants and striped satin shirt worn with sun shades was a classy, fashionable tackle courtroom dressing. Upon first look, it regarded like the kind of paparazzi-style marketing campaign Rocky has starred in for Italian luxurious label Bottega Veneta. Just a few days later, a press blast distributed to journalists confirmed that Rocky had been kitted out head-to-toe in Saint Laurent.
When the media alert was despatched, Rocky — who has now been acquitted on all expenses — was nonetheless the lead suspect in an ongoing prison trial. But Saint Laurent was not deterred by the questionable backdrop, persevering with to ship a number of releases after every new courtroom look. It stunned even a senior vogue public relations government in London, who stated they’d advise PRs to keep away from sharing outfit particulars and procuring hyperlinks when items have been worn to delicate occasions. “It’s not appropriate to be shouting about them wearing your brand in those contexts,” they stated. “It’s tacky.” (Saint Laurent didn’t reply to requests from NCS for remark.)
But the French luxurious home isn’t the solely model hoping to captialize on the free press that comes with extremely publicized lawsuits. In 2024, Anna Delvey — the “fake heiress” who was discovered responsible of grand larceny, among other financial crimes, in 2019 — used one of her immigration court docket appearances to advertise rising vogue label Shao New York by carrying a customized outfit by the model (the designer is a shopper of the OutLaw Agency, a enterprise Delvey started with publicisit Kelly Cutrone in 2023).
In Kardashian’s case, she was not showing as an individual convicted of a criminal offense however relatively a veritable sufferer. “The appearance of wrongdoing was not anything that she needed to address,” stated Hand. Instead of sending a message to the choose and jury, as is normally the objective of a celebrity courtroom outfit, Kardashian’s diamonds spoke on to the public. What they have been actually meant to say, nonetheless, isn’t crystal clear.