After receiving a firestorm of criticism, Disney has withdrawn its motion to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit on the grounds that the Disney+ terms the victim’s family agreed to when signing up for a one-month free trial of the service in 2019 required binding arbitration everafter.
42-year-old Kanokporn Tangsuan, a doctor at NYU Langone Medical Center in Manhattan, suffered fatal anaphylaxis after dining at Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant in the Disney Springs resort on October 5. She was clear with staff that she had severe food allergies and was assured her restrictions could be accommodated safely. She died a short time later after suffering an anaphylactic reaction.
Tangsuan’s husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Orange County Circuit Court in February alleging that she died from an anaphylactic reaction at Disney Springs and accusing the resort and the restaurant of negligence in her death.
Court records show that on May 31, Disney argued the case should be sent to arbitration rather than a jury trial because the terms of creating a free trial subscription of the Disney+ streaming account included a ‘binding arbitration clause.’
Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney’s theme park division, said the company will waive its right to arbitration and allow the suit to proceed.
In a statement issued last night, D’Amaro said:
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.
