Disney Waives Right To Arbitration In Allergy Death Suit, Case Will Go To Court

[Update 2] Disney is waiving its right to arbitration and is moving to settle this matter in court. Josh D’Amaro, chairman for Disney Experiences, 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.”

“As such, we have decided to waive our right to arbitration and have the matter proceed in court.”

[Update] Disney has released a statement on the matter. Via Scott Gustin, the statement begins, “We are deeply saddened by the family’s loss and understand their grief.”

It goes on: “Given that this restaurant is neither owned nor operated by Disney, we are merely defending ourselves against the platniff’s attorney’s attempt to include us in their lawsuit against the restaurant.”

The original story follows below.

If you’ve ever signed up for Disney+, is it a reasonable assumption that by clicking on the user agreement for the streaming service, the terms can be extended to protecting the company from going to court over a wrongful death that happened in one of its theme parks? According to Disney’s lawyers, the Disney+ user agreement is the company’s justification for trying to send a British man’s lawsuit over the death of his wife into arbitration.

Via BBC, Jeffrey Piccolo filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Disney after his wife died, following a severe allergic reaction after she ate in one of Walt Disney World’s restaurants. However, Disney’s lawyers are contending that because Piccolo once signed up for a free trial of Disney+ and signed the user agreement–which stipulates arbitration be used in place of a lawsuit–he can’t sue the park. Piccolo’s Disney+ trial was in 2019, and the company argues that he agreed to the terms again when he purchased the couple’s Disney World tickets last year.

This is an untested legal theory, to say the least. Piccolo’s lawyers are countering that Disney’s filing “is based on the incredible argument that any person who signs up for a Disney+ account, even free trials that are not extended beyond the trial period, will have forever waived the right to a jury trial.”

Ernest Aduwa, a lawyer who is unconnected to the case, told BBC that “Disney is pushing the envelope of contract law. The courts will have to consider, on balance, if the arbitration clause in a contract for a streaming service can really be applied to as serious an allegation of wrongful death through negligence at a theme park.”

This case is currently unfolding in British court, and we haven’t heard any stories about Disney making the same legal argument in the United States. But if this interpretation is accepted by either American or British courts, it should cause some fans to reconsider clicking on any user agreements ever again.