What Do You Think About the Case of the Woman That Sued McDonalds After Being Burned By Coffee Heated to 180–190 °F?

Hot CoffeeYou may remember back in 1994 when a case known as Liebeck v. McDonalds Restaurants made national news and the plaintiff, a 79 year old woman was awarded $2.86 million dollars after suing McDonalds. The plaintiff accidentally spilled hot coffee in her lap and suffered from 3rd degree burns sending her to the hospital followed by two years of subsequent medical treatment.

On one hand people insist this was a frivolous litigation and some people were outraged by her winning this award. Many people felt like she knew the coffee was hot and spilled it on herself, not a result of a defect product.

Others believed that there is no acceptable reason to serve coffee at temperatures capable of burning flesh and that the woman was entitled to win the law suit. Even today this is a conversation that is stirred up around the office coffee pot (pun intended) and debate continues.

What do you think….did she deserve to win the lawsuit?

 

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2 Comments
  1. She knew the coffee was hot so why should she win a lawsuit over that? Isn’t that like like buying a bottle of wine and suing because you got drunk?

  2. Heck yea she deserved to win. What would have happened if she drank it? Crazy.

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