After Disney Wields its Terms of Use to Dismiss Customer’s Lawsuit, Groups Call on Congress to Pass FAIR Act

September 16, 2024 — Press Release

WASHINGTON – In light of the recent news of the Walt Disney Company’s attempted use of its terms and conditions to deny the legal rights of its patrons harmed at a restaurant on its premises, public interest organizations today called on the U.S. House and Senate Judiciary Committees to take steps to pass the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act, H.R. 2953 and S.1376. The FAIR Act, sponsored by Rep. Hank Johnson (Ga.), and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) would ensure that consumers, workers, and small businesses have access to the court system when they are harmed, and allows them to reject big corporations’ use of the fine print to deny them of this critical legal protection.

“This case is the latest high-profile example of corporations’ weaponization of fine print traps to evade accountability, even when accused of wrongful death, by stripping consumers of their constitutional right to a trial by jury,” said Shennan Kavanagh, director of litigation at the National Consumer Law Center. “Congress must pass the FAIR Act to stop corporations from using abusive arbitration clauses.”

News broke last month that Disney sought to use its terms of use against a patron who had filed a wrongful death lawsuit against it after his wife died of an allergic reaction at a restaurant on Disney grounds in Orlando, Florida. The patron alleged that the restaurant failed to heed the couple’s numerous warnings and requests relating to his wife’s food allergies, and that, among other things, the couple relied on Disney statements regarding accommodations for persons with food allergies. Disney threatened to use restrictive terms from the patron’s Disney+ account to deny his access to court and force him to resolve his claims in private secret arbitration. In response to a public outcry, Disney reversed itself and let this one lawsuit proceed in a court of law. 

In the letter sent to the Judiciary Committees, the organizations said, “(p)redispute forced arbitration clauses in corporate terms and conditions undermine consumers’ ability to enforce their rights when harmed in the marketplace and shield corporations from being held accountable. Forced arbitration removes consumers’ critical choice to go to court and to be heard by a judge and jury. Instead, this constitutional right is displaced by private, secret arbitration proceedings that lack due process protections of a public court, including rules of evidence and the right to appeal decisions.” 

“It’s not just Disney. For too long, big businesses have used one-sided, nonnegotiable terms and conditions to suppress their customers’ legal protections. These terms are so broad that they typically cover all their products and services, as well as any conceivable claims or disputes that a consumer may rightfully have against a business,” the letter said. 

“Big corporations should be stopped from using their terms and conditions to eliminate a person’s constitutional right to go to court,” said Christine Hines, senior policy director at the National Association of Consumer Advocates. “Congress should pass the FAIR Act now to ensure that all consumers can meaningfully decide how to exercise this right when they need it most.” 

“Americans who are cheated and then seek justice in our courts regularly have the courthouse doors slammed in their face and are forced into a rigged arbitration system. The FAIR Act would ensure that people can have their day in court,” said Mitria Wilson Spotser, vice president and federal policy director at the Center for Responsible Lending.

“Large corporations like Disney should not get to choose when and how people can exercise their constitutional rights,” said Christine Chen Zinner, senior policy counsel at the Americans for Financial Reform. “In this case, Disney retracted forced arbitration after someone died as damage control, but Congress must pass the FAIR Act to restore justice not just in this one instance, but everywhere.”

“Powerful companies are working harder every day to stop the victims of their misconduct from holding them accountable,” said Erin Witte, Director of Consumer Protection at Consumer Federation of America. “Congress should work just as hard to give power back to victims like the widower in this tragic case, and one of the best ways to do that is to immediately pass the FAIR Act.”

“The quick and widespread public backlash against Disney shows us that Americans believe that corporations shouldn’t be able to use fine print as a get-out-of-jail-free, or more precisely, a get-out-of-ever-having-to-go-to-court card,” said Sharon McGowan, Chief Executive Officer of Public Justice. “The FAIR Act restores the ability of those who have been harmed to have their day in court, and in doing so, ensures that corporations can be held accountable in cases where their actions have caused real harm.”