Lawsuits against fast-food chains and coffee shops are nothing new.
Who can forget the infamous hot coffee in the lap lawsuit against McDonald’s?
And now a California man just won a $50 million lawsuit against Starbucks for one shocking reason.
A California delivery driver just won a whopping $50 million in a lawsuit against Starbucks.
Permanent and life-changing disfigurement from a cup of hot tea
The lawsuit was filed after the man was seriously burned when a Starbucks drink spilled in his lap at a California drive-through, court records show.
Garcia underwent skin grafts and other procedures after a venti-sized tea drink spilled shortly after he received it on February 8, 2020.
According to his attorneys, Garcia has suffered permanent and life-changing disfigurement.
Garcia’s negligence lawsuit against the Seattle-based Starbucks blamed his injuries on the chain, saying an employee didn’t wedge the scalding-hot tea firmly enough into the takeout tray.
“This jury verdict is a critical step in holding Starbucks accountable for flagrant disregard for customer safety and failure to accept responsibility,” one of Garcia’s attorneys, Nick Rowley, said in a statement.
While Starbucks said it sympathized with Garcia for his pain and disfigurement, they still planned to appeal the jury’s decision.
“We disagree with the jury’s decision that we were at fault for this incident and believe the damages awarded to be excessive,” the leftist-run coffee giant said in a statement.
They also added that it was “committed to the highest safety standards” in handling hot drinks.
Not the first lawsuit of its kind
The lawsuit against Starbucks is nothing new.
Many U.S. restaurants have faced lawsuits in the past over customer burns.
In probably the most famous case from the 1990s, a New Mexico jury awarded a woman nearly $3 million in damages for burns she suffered while trying to take the lid off a cup of coffee at a McDonald’s drive-through.
A judge later reduced that sum, and the case ultimately was settled for an undisclosed sum that ended up under $600,000.
Some juries have sided with restaurants, like in another 1990s case involving a child who knocked a cup of McDonald’s coffee onto himself in Iowa.
While Starbucks plans its appeal in this case, some legal experts are predicting that the $50 million jury award is likely to be reduced by a judge.
Depending on what that reduction ends up being, it is possible Starbucks could decide to settle and drop their appeal.
While there is no doubt Mr. Garcia suffered from his burns, some legal experts contend that he may be partly to blame for the spill.
And most people aren’t so sure a $50 million judgement is in line.
But in this day and age of legalism, class envy, and anti-corporate ideology, it’s not surprising the jury (especially a California jury) made the decision.
Unfortunately, what most people don’t seem to realize is that massive lawsuits like this one only further increase costs for all Americans.
