Disney is backtracking on its push against a wrongful death lawsuit that it was named in. Last week, Disney claimed that the victim’s Disney+ account terms precluded the family from seeking a court trial.
The Lawsuit
In March, a lawsuit filed against Disney and Raglan Road following the death of Kanokporn Tangsuan, a doctor who suffered anaphylaxis after eating at the Disney Springs restaurant. Despite informing the waiter about her allergies and receiving assurances that the food was allergen-free, Tangsuan experienced a severe allergic reaction shortly after the meal. She collapsed in a nearby restaurant and died.
The lawsuit claims that Raglan Road and Disney failed to ensure the food was safe for guests with allergies and did not properly train staff to handle allergy requests. Although Disney does not directly operate Raglan Road, the suit argues that Disney has control over the menu and staff training.
Disney Backtracking
Last week, Disney claimed that terms the plaintiff agreed to as part of a Disney+ account in 2019 gave Disney the right to arbitration. As such, they could not be sued in court alongside Raglan Road. However, tonight Disney is backtracking on that push.
In a statement from Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro:
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.
Disney received a lot of negative pushback from the public on their attempt to so broadly apply terms from a streaming service into a wrongful death defense. It seems that Disney took note of this guest feedback, as they have started to do more regularly, and chose the better optics for this matter going forward.
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