Disney has recently come under fire after they tried to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit against them by a widower, all because he signed up for a Disney+ account years ago. They have recently backtracked on their initial statement, but what exactly has happened with the case so far?
What caused his wife’s death?
Jeffery J. Piccolo decided to start a legal battle against Disney Parks and Resorts earlier this year in February following the death of his wife, Dr Kanokporn Tangsuan. His wife suffered an allergic reaction when they ate at the Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant at Disney World Orlando on 5 October 2023.
According to Jeffery’s legal claim, they had ensured to explicitly tell the employees about Dr Kanokporn’s severe dairy and nut allergies, with them being reassured the food was “unequivocally” safe for her to eat.
Roughly 45 minutes after eating her food, she suddenly started having an allergic reaction and collapsed, and whilst her EpiPen was administered on the way to the hospital she sadly passed away. Her death was officially ruled as accidental and due to the result of anaphylaxis following a severe allergic reaction.
What claims did Jeffery make against the Walt Disney Company?
Jeffery proceeded to file a lawsuit against the restaurant and the Walt Disney Company, claiming his wife’s death was “totally preventable” and if “proper protocols” had been followed it could have been avoided.
The lawsuit claims that the Walt Disney Company: “Failed to educate, train and/or instruct its employees [to] make sure food indicated as allergen free or requested to be made allergen free, was in fact free of allergens.” Jeffery was seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages from Disney for mental pain and suffering, funeral expenses, medical expenses and loss of income.
The bottom of the menu available online notes: “Cross-contamination may occur and thus we CAN NOT GUARANTEE that any dish we prepare will be completely free of gluten/allergens.”
How did Disney initially respond?
However, the company promptly tried to have the lawsuit dismissed and sent to arbitration, due to the fact that Jeffery signed and agreed to terms when he signed up for a Disney+ account in 2019. The BBC also reported that he accepted the same terms and conditions when he bought the tickets for himself and his wife to visit Disney World in 2023.
The brand claimed that when Jeffery signed up for his initial one month trial of Disney+ in 2019 he agreed to the terms of their subscriber agreement. It stated that users must resolve any disputes through arbitration instead of litigation. This means the case would have to be halted and be overseen by a neutral third party instead of a judge.
It says users agree to settle any legal disputes with the company only via arbitration in its terms of use, meaning any dispute is overseen by a neutral third party and not a judge in its terms of use.
They wrote in court documents: “The first page of the Subscriber Agreement states, in all capital letters, that ‘any dispute between You and Us, Except for Small Claims, is subject to a class action waiver and must be resolved by individual binding arbitration.”
A spokesperson for the company told LADbible Group: “We are deeply saddened by the family’s loss and understand their grief. Given that this restaurant is neither owned nor operated by Disney, we are merely defending ourselves against the plaintiff’s attorney’s attempt to include us in their lawsuit against the restaurant.”
They have now changed their stance on the case
However, following backlash Disney have now announced it will “waive” its “right to arbitration” and let the case go to court.
Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Experiences, told CNN: “At Disney, we strive to put humanity above all other considerations. With such unique circumstances as the ones in this case, we believe this situation warrants a sensitive approach to expedite a resolution for the family who have experienced such a painful loss. As such, we’ve decided to waive our right to arbitration and have the matter proceed in court.”
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