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Disney Backs Down From Effort to Use Disney+ Agreement to Block Lawsuit
The entertainment company had faced a backlash after claiming that a man whose wife died after an allergic reaction to food at Disney World had waived his right to sue when he signed up for Disney+.
Disney withdrew its request to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit out of court on Monday, clearing the way for the case of a woman who died from a severe allergic reaction to food she ate at a Disney World restaurant to be heard in front of a jury.
The woman, Kanokporn Tangsuan, a family medicine specialist who lived on Long Island, was severely allergic to nuts and dairy. She died in October after eating dishes her server assured her were allergen-free, according to a lawsuit filed by her husband against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.
Disney’s request was met with swift backlash last week, after news outlets reported on the company’s claim that Dr. Tangsuan’s husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, had agreed to arbitration when he signed up for a free trial of the streaming service Disney+ and was therefore not eligible to sue.
Disney also noted that the restaurant, Raglan Road, an Irish pub in the Disney Springs section of its Orlando resort, was independently owned and operated.
Mr. Piccolo is seeking damages over $50,000, the minimum required to file in Florida circuit court, but a jury could award much higher punitive damages, his lawyers said.
Despite repeated claims that Disney’s only role in the tragedy was as a “landlord” to Raglan Road, on Monday a representative for the company said that it acknowledged that arbitration would draw out an already painful process for Mr. Piccolo. The hearing to move the case to arbitration, set for Oct. 2, was canceled on Tuesday.
“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,” Josh D’Amaro, the chairman of Disney Parks, said in a statement. “As such, we’ve decided to waive our right to arbitration and have the matter proceed in court.”
Initially, Disney argued in legal filings that the matter should be settled by an outside arbitrator, because Mr. Piccolo had agreed to settle any disputes out of court when he signed up for a free trial of its streaming service on his PlayStation and again when he purchased tickets to Epcot through the MyDisney website.
Brian R. Denney, a lawyer for Mr. Piccolo, said in a statement that Disney’s attempt to prevent the case from going to trial should be “looked at with skepticism.”
“Although Disney has withdrawn its motion, the arbitration clauses they relied upon in their motion still exist on their various platforms,” Mr. Denney said. “This potentially puts other people injured by Disney’s negligence at risk of facing a similar legal challenge.”
Matt Adler, a partner at Troutman Pepper who regularly represents clients in arbitration, said that it was very uncommon for a party to withdraw its request for arbitration instead of letting a judge decide. Arbitration agreements are usually upheld, he said, though this one was “a bit of a stretch.”
“My guess is that they decided that the harm they were suffering in the public eye was greater than the risk of losing money on this case,” said Mr. Adler, who does not represent Disney. “I was surprised.”
Mr. Adler added that consumers are party to more arbitration agreements than they might think. Cellphone contracts, brokerage agreements and many other everyday commitments include such clauses, which is why there has been what he called “an explosion of arbitration” over the past 20 years.
Dr. Tangsuan, who was affiliated with NYU Langone Hospital Long Island, visited Disney World with her husband and her mother on Oct. 5. The group stopped for dinner at Raglan Road, where Dr. Tangsuan informed their server that she was severely allergic to dairy and nuts.
They ordered onion rings and items labeled “Sure I’m Frittered,” “Scallop Forest” and “This Shepherd Went Vegan,” which the server told them did not contain allergens, according to the lawsuit. When the items arrived without flags in them marking them as allergen-free, the server assured Dr. Tangsuan the dishes were safe to eat.
She had chosen the restaurant, according to the complaint, because Disney had advertised its focus on accommodating people with allergies on its website.
Less than an hour after eating, Dr. Tangsuan began struggling to breathe and collapsed. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Mr. Denney said Mr. Piccolo was hopeful that his lawsuit would prompt corporations to change their food preparation policies to improve safety.
“He also hopes these recent events have raised awareness of the millions of people of all ages and walks of life who suffer with food allergies,” Mr. Denney said.
Disney Backs Down From Effort to Use Disney+ Agreement to Block Lawsuit
The entertainment company had faced a backlash after claiming that a man whose wife died after an allergic reaction to food at Disney World had waived his right to sue when he signed up for Disney+.
Disney withdrew its request to settle a wrongful-death lawsuit out of court on Monday, clearing the way for the case of a woman who died from a severe allergic reaction to food she ate at a Disney World restaurant to be heard in front of a jury.
The woman, Kanokporn Tangsuan, a family medicine specialist who lived on Long Island, was severely allergic to nuts and dairy. She died in October after eating dishes her server assured her were allergen-free, according to a lawsuit filed by her husband against Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.
Disney’s request was met with swift backlash last week, after news outlets reported on the company’s claim that Dr. Tangsuan’s husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, had agreed to arbitration when he signed up for a free trial of the streaming service Disney+ and was therefore not eligible to sue.
Disney also noted that the restaurant, Raglan Road, an Irish pub in the Disney Springs section of its Orlando resort, was independently owned and operated.
Mr. Piccolo is seeking damages over $50,000, the minimum required to file in Florida circuit court, but a jury could award much higher punitive damages, his lawyers said.
Despite repeated claims that Disney’s only role in the tragedy was as a “landlord” to Raglan Road, on Monday a representative for the company said that it acknowledged that arbitration would draw out an already painful process for Mr. Piccolo. The hearing to move the case to arbitration, set for Oct. 2, was canceled on Tuesday.
“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,” Josh D’Amaro, the chairman of Disney Parks, said in a statement. “As such, we’ve decided to waive our right to arbitration and have the matter proceed in court.”
Initially, Disney argued in legal filings that the matter should be settled by an outside arbitrator, because Mr. Piccolo had agreed to settle any disputes out of court when he signed up for a free trial of its streaming service on his PlayStation and again when he purchased tickets to Epcot through the MyDisney website.
Brian R. Denney, a lawyer for Mr. Piccolo, said in a statement that Disney’s attempt to prevent the case from going to trial should be “looked at with skepticism.”
“Although Disney has withdrawn its motion, the arbitration clauses they relied upon in their motion still exist on their various platforms,” Mr. Denney said. “This potentially puts other people injured by Disney’s negligence at risk of facing a similar legal challenge.”
Matt Adler, a partner at Troutman Pepper who regularly represents clients in arbitration, said that it was very uncommon for a party to withdraw its request for arbitration instead of letting a judge decide. Arbitration agreements are usually upheld, he said, though this one was “a bit of a stretch.”
“My guess is that they decided that the harm they were suffering in the public eye was greater than the risk of losing money on this case,” said Mr. Adler, who does not represent Disney. “I was surprised.”
Mr. Adler added that consumers are party to more arbitration agreements than they might think. Cellphone contracts, brokerage agreements and many other everyday commitments include such clauses, which is why there has been what he called “an explosion of arbitration” over the past 20 years.
Dr. Tangsuan, who was affiliated with NYU Langone Hospital Long Island, visited Disney World with her husband and her mother on Oct. 5. The group stopped for dinner at Raglan Road, where Dr. Tangsuan informed their server that she was severely allergic to dairy and nuts.
They ordered onion rings and items labeled “Sure I’m Frittered,” “Scallop Forest” and “This Shepherd Went Vegan,” which the server told them did not contain allergens, according to the lawsuit. When the items arrived without flags in them marking them as allergen-free, the server assured Dr. Tangsuan the dishes were safe to eat.
She had chosen the restaurant, according to the complaint, because Disney had advertised its focus on accommodating people with allergies on its website.
Less than an hour after eating, Dr. Tangsuan began struggling to breathe and collapsed. She was taken to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Mr. Denney said Mr. Piccolo was hopeful that his lawsuit would prompt corporations to change their food preparation policies to improve safety.
“He also hopes these recent events have raised awareness of the millions of people of all ages and walks of life who suffer with food allergies,” Mr. Denney said.
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