A New York University doctor died after being served food she was allergic to even after communicating her allergies with waitstaff and being assured they could accommodate her.
Her husband is suing Disney for her wrongful death, but in a perplexing legal maneuver, their attorneys are using the fine print in his Disney+ subscription to get the lawsuit thrown out.
Mediaite reports:
Kanokporn Tangsuan, a 42-year-old physician, died in October 2023 after she and her husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, ate at an Irish pub in Disney Springs. The restaurant, Raglan Road — which is not owned or operated by Disney — advertised itself as having “allergen free food” available to those who needed it, and Tangsuan ordered items that she was told were allergen free. The couple also informed their server that she had a “severe allergy to nuts and dairy products.” But about 45 minutes after their meal, Tangsuan experienced difficulty breathing and collapsed, and she died at the hospital. The medical examiner reported that she had “elevated levels of dairy and nut in her system.”
Her widower is suing Disney for $50,000, citing mental pain and suffering, loss of income and funeral expenses. Commentators have scorched the company for using a legal loophole to avoid paying what’s perceived as a nominal amount in comparison to their annual earnings.
The New York Post reports:
But in its motion to dismiss Piccolo’s suit, Disney cited his free trial subscription of the Disney+ streaming service, which required his agreement to their Terms of Use. The Hollywood Reporter wrote:
“The Terms of Use, which were provided with the Subscriber Agreement, include a binding arbitration clause,” the company wrote in its motion. “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’.”
In addition to the Disney+ free trial, Piccolo also created an account when he signed up for a Disney app ahead of the couple’s October 2023 visit. That also required his agreement to Disney’s Terms of Use, which contained a “similar” arbitration agreement.
The company is no stranger to legal controversy.
In 1989, the media behemoth threatened to sue three day care centers in Hallandale, Florida upon discovery life-sized murals of trademarked Disney characters including Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Goofy painted on their walls.
The daycares swiftly replaced the art with Universal Studios and Hanna-Barbera Productions characters after they volunteered their character art in a masterful publicity stunt, taking advantage of their competitor’s bad press.
Earlier this year, a judge threw out their lawsuit against Governor Ron Desantis, arguing that he violated their First Amendment rights by revoking their special district status.
Extermination of say 90% of the lawyers & spay/neuter of 90% of the rest would get us back to where we belong.
And any lawyers in politics should be 100% removed and made to get honest, PRODUCTIVE jobs. No more feeding off the Gov’t. teat !