Gabrielle Russon
There might be smoking gun evidence in a lawsuit filed after a woman died from severe food allergies when she ate at a Disney Springs pub last year.
Kanokporn Tangsuan’s husband took a doggy bag from their dinner on Oct. 5, 2023, at Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant. The leftover meal has been frozen ever since.
Both sides in the lawsuit are asking the courts for guidance about what to do next.
“Although it is unknown how much food is in the sample or whether it is enough to be tested, it is in the best interest of the parties to attempt to have the food sample tested for allergens,” the widower’s attorney said in a Nov. 15 court filing. “Undersigned Counsel has attempted to confer with the parties in order to come up with a protocol for the testing of the food, but no protocol could be agreed upon. Therefore, court intervention is required.”
So far, Orange Circuit Court Judge A. James Craner has not ruled on the motion.
Tangsuan’s widower, Jeffrey Piccolo, is suing Disney and the restaurant in a wrongful death lawsuit. Disney has seen a wave of negative publicity even though the theme park giant did not own or operate the restaurant that allegedly served the woman her fatal meal of broccoli and corn fritters, scallops, vegan shepherd’s pie and onion rings.
Tangsuan, 42, a beloved New York doctor, had asked the restaurant several times if her food was free of allergens, according to the wrongful death lawsuit filed in February. Forty-five minutes after dinner, after she had split up from her husband and mother-in-law, Tangsuan collapsed alone at the popular outdoor restaurant and shopping complex outside Disney World. She died in the hospital shortly afterward.
Florida Politics broke the story that Disney was using its terms and conditions for the Disney+ streaming service and My Disney Experience app to fight the lawsuit and force Piccolo into arbitration, avoiding a jury. Disney said it was just defending itself in the lawsuit.
Eventually, as The New York Times and other outlets began picking up on the story, Disney walked back its legal strategy. Disney said it was reversing course and was no longer asking to send the case to arbitration. Instead, Disney is allowing the civil lawsuit to go through Orange Circuit Court. Disney Experiences Chair Josh D’Amaro issued a statement, a rare thing for a Disney leader, to comment on the pending litigation.
Several lawyers — including Piccolo’s — fear Disney may try to deploy the same legal strategy in the future in other lawsuits.
Neither Disney, Raglan Road nor Piccolo‘s attorney immediately responded to a request for comment for this story about the Nov. 15 court filing.
All sides agreed in September to keep records confidential in the ongoing lawsuit.
“During the course of this action, the Parties or others may be required to exchange non-public materials that contain confidential, medical, proprietary, trade secret or other commercially-sensitive information,” Disney said in a court filing. “Because a confidentiality order will facilitate the exchange of such information the Parties have agreed to produce documents subject to a confidentiality order.”
