Disney’s playing a stunning wild card in its face-off against a man suing over the death of his wife … claiming the guy’s Disney+ subscription prevents him from taking the Mouse House to court.
According to new court documents obtained by TMZ … Disney has asked for the wrongful death lawsuit to be kicked out of court, because the plaintiff, Jeffrey Piccolo, agreed to arbitrate all disputes against Disney when he signed up, back in 2019, for a one-month trial to its streaming service.
What the hell does TV streaming have to do with Piccolo’s wife, Kanokporn Tangsuan, dying in 2023 from a food allergy reaction at Disney World? Disney says the answer’s in their fine print.
We’ve all seen it … when ya sign up for Disney+, there’s a lengthy agreement, which ya don’t read and then simply click the “I agree” box.
However, that agreement includes a clause requiring you to arbitrate any disputes with Disney, instead of filing a lawsuit in traditional court. The benefit for Disney is arbitration is private, and it gets to avoid any bad PR.
Piccolo’s attorney has already hit back at Disney … calling the argument “preposterous” and saying it’s an attempt to block millions of subscribers from ever suing the business in standard court.
Tangsuan passed away in October 2023 after dining with her husband and her mother-in-law at the Raglan Road Irish Pub within the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando.
Piccolo has claimed in his lawsuit when the group chose to eat at the pub, they were led to believe the menu was safe for Tangsuan, who had severe nut and dairy allergies.
According to the suit, she later used an EpiPen on herself after she began having an allergic reaction to the meal, but ultimately died from anaphylaxis.