A former champion US boardsailor who has battled eight years in an effort to obtain $15 million in damages from a New Zealand Olympic gold medallist has had another appeal turned down by the Supreme Court.
Kimberley Birkenfeld suffered brain and spinal injuries in 2002 when her windsurfer and a boat driven by Bruce Kendall collided off the coast of Greece.
Ms Birkenfeld claims Mr Kendall drove into her, but he maintains that she was travelling at high speed and he could not avoid the collision.
An earlier court hearing reduced her claim to $500,000.
Yachting New Zealand has made several offers to pay her that amount, but she has refused to accept it.
On Wednesday the Supreme Court dismissed her bid for a further hearing to consider whether the rules relating to accessing court records deprived her of her right to a fair and public hearing.
The court said it is not persuaded that those regulations had a prejudicial effect on the preparation of the case.
