As established by the American “Newsweek”, Disney will not block Jeffrey Piccolo's lawsuit against the company. His wife she died from an allergic reaction after a meal at Disney World in Orlando. The conglomerate tried to end the case by citing the terms of its VOD service. Disney's lawyers initially said the woman's husband had agreed to out-of-court settlement of disputes by accepting the terms of use of the Disney+ platform in 2019.
“At Disney, we strive to put humanity above all else. In extraordinary circumstances such as these, we believe the situation requires a sensitive approach,” Disney said in a statement. The company said it is “waiving its right to arbitrate and have this matter resolved in court.”
Death at Disney World. Company Won't Block Lawsuit
It is worth noting that according to this statement, Disney is only waiving its “right to arbitration”. The company has not withdrawn its position that the Disney+ terms and conditions force out-of-court settlement of disputes with the conglomerate, but only that it will not use this possibility. Such an interpretation means that people who agreed to the VOD service terms and conditions essentially waive the right to a lawsuit against Disney, unless the company allows it, as in the case of Jeffrey Piccolo.
According to Newsweek, Disney was convinced that it could pursue this defense path because the poisoning occurred in Restaurant tenants. The company was involved in the case by the plaintiff on the basis of information from the Disney World website. The site's rules call for arbitration to resolve disputes, and Disney felt it could have used those rules in this case. Ultimately, it backed down, perhaps because of the wave of criticism that poured in against the company.
Apparently someone at Disney realized that memes like 'If you sign a Disney+ deal, Disney can legally kill you' aren't good for business
– summed up on his Facebook fanpage Mysticism of Pop Culture, or Michał Ochnik, writer, pop culture commentator and author of the book “Remake. Apocalypse of Pop Culture”.
Woman's husband sues Disney, company uses unusual defense
Jeffrey Piccolo and his wife Kanokporn Tangsuany visited Disney World in Orlando, Florida on October 5, 2023. During their visit, they went to dinner at a restaurant in the theme park. Before the meal, they repeatedly reminded the staff that the woman was allergic, so her meal could not contain specific ingredients. Despite her requests, the dish served contained dairy and nuts. Kanokporn Tangsuan was taken to the hospital that same day, where she died as a result of an allergic reaction.
Jeffrey Piccolo sues Disney World for over $50,000 dollars in connection with the death of his wife. The company responded that it did not want the case to go to court, because it should be resolved in arbitration. Disney's lawyers stated that the woman's husband agreed to an out-of-court settlement of disputes by accepting the terms of use of the Disney+ platform in 2019. At that time, Piccolo signed up for a one-month free trial. The conglomerate's representatives also considered that the man accepted the terms again shortly before visiting the park, because he used his Disney account to buy tickets.
According to Piccolo's lawyers, Disney used the “incredible argument that anyone who registers for a Disney account forever waives the right to a jury trial.” They also emphasized that the man agreed to the Disney+ terms of use himself, and is currently acting on behalf of his deceased wife, who did not give any consent. Arbitration is a method of resolving disputes, supervised by a third party who is not a judge. It is also supposed to be faster and cheaper than a court case and allows to avoid media attention.