Introduction Hot coffee. Third degree burns. Lawsuits. Who 's to blame? Seventy-nine years old, Stella Liebeck purchased hot coffee at McDonald 's, extremely “hot” coffee, at a temperature well above the expected level brewed at home, on account of a quality assertion that the temperature was best maintained between 180o and 190o. Burning herself extensively, she sued the company, alleging the coffee was too hot, fated to harm someone. The argument presented by McDonald 's was that customers were only purchasing the coffee to drink later when they arrived at home or office, thereby, seeing a decrease in temperature to a more agreeable heat level when finally consumed. Nonetheless, not all customers delay their coffee consumption; …show more content…
Yes, definitely. As a buyer, freedom to choose to purchase is maximized, and adhered to. Likewise, age and maturity deserve respect, no matter the outcome. The important part of respect is that mistakes do happen. There is no shame in making a mistake, admitting it, and continuing on with honour (Brusseau, 2012, p. 617).
Ms. Liebeck, at 79 years young, was fully competent and extremely capable; as a mature, more experienced adult, she would have greater knowledge and perception of coffee temperatures; the choice was hers. It is disrespectful to presume that mental capacity shuts down, or assume infirmity, as we age.
Oxford Reference on more line supplies a definition of an implicit contract as a “an understanding between parties on acceptable forms of behaviour that is not part of any formal agreement” (n.d.). An unwritten, implied understanding, the customer sees the transfer of money, and the acceptance of goods or services, as more than a transaction, more than the action itself. “The transaction is also the creation of the contract” (Brusseau, 2012, p. 618); now there are implied terms and conditions, or requirements, to this agreement.
Within this contract, lies a valid relationship. Neither the buyer nor the seller is under duress; they have not been coerced into this arrangement. They reach a conclusion of their own free will. Information is exchanged, not secret or hidden, both know what they are doing, or
2. What reason did you give for why it is important to offer the model more than two cups (one with the milk added first and one with the milk added second)? Was your answer the same as Fisher's answer? Based on the essay, please describe Fisher's answer to this question.
This lawsuit had impact on both the business world and the rules of the law. McDonald's was forced to reexamine its policy. McDonald's was aware of the risk and hazard, but undertook nothing to mitigate or reduce the risk of injury. The company knew about burn hazards and continued to serve coffee hot to save money and get away with cheaper grade coffee. After reexamining their policy, McDonald's has been serving coffee at a temperature low enough not to cause immediate third-degree burns. This
Tort reform is a push by special interest to limit tort litigation in the U.S. The documentary Hot Coffee, walks us through 4 case studies on the methods used by the Tort reform lobby. Composed of businesses, manufacturers, hospitals, insurance companies and other businesses. Using their money to affect changes to the 7th Amendment statutes:
u. P2) This implies that the seller who intends to enter a contract with a customer has a duty to disclose exactly what the customer is buying and what the terms of the sale are.
Through the discovery and length of the case it was discovered that the company had a large number of complains with their coffee. It was also discovered that the coffee was made to be from 180 to 190 degrees Fahrenheit, which can cause third degree burns in a few seconds. When it came to allocations, 80% of the blame was placed on McDonals and the remaining was placed on Stella; this
On February 27, 1992, Stella Liebeck, aged 79 at the time, bought a coffee from the drive-thru of a McDonald’s in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She spilled the coffee on herself and received third-degree (full thickness) burns. She sued McDonald’s and was originally awarded almost $3 million in damages. This case is a perfect example of frivolous litigation and is one of the reasons some Americans think there needs to be civil justice reform.
I disagree with this decision because Christopher suffered second-degree burns which is more than enough evidence to show that the coffee was too ho. No warning was given to the family by the employee, and Burger King lacked to have the manufacturer of their coffee cups place a warning on the cups. A lot of cases like this have occurred before, and now it is a requirement for the warning to be placed on containers. Some may argue that you know to proceed with caution when handling hot objects, and that Evelyn should not have placed the cup holder on the floor or the dashboard which would have
In the event that the buyer breaches this agreement, the seller may keep the buyer 's deposit, but the seller shall be limited to this remedy and only this remedy.
In Albuquerque, NM, Stella Libeck, a 79 year-old woman, a passenger accidentally spilled scalding hot coffee in her lap, which was purchased through the McDonald’s drive-thru. The incident caused third-degree burns around her pelvic area. She was in the hospital for eight days and was required to receive medical treatment for two years. With the required medical treatments, her medical expenses began to accumulate and her funds began to dwindle. Liebeck requested McDonald’s to
The movie, “Hot Coffee”, is a documentary film that was created by Susan Saladoff in 2011 that analyzes the impact of the tort reform on the United States judicial system. The title and the basis of the film is derived from the Liebeck v. McDonald’s restaurants lawsuit where Liebeck had burned herself after spilling hot coffee purchased from McDonald’s into her lap. The film features four different suits that may involve the tort reform. This film included many comments from politicians and celebrities about the case. There were also several myths and misconceptions on how Liebeck had spilled the coffee and how severe the burns were to her. One of the myths was that many people thought she was driving when she spilled the coffee on herself and that she suffered only minor burns, while in truth she suffered severe burns and needed surgery. This case is portrayed in the film as being used and misused to describe in conjunction with tort reform efforts. The film explained how corporations have spent millions of dollars deforming tort cases in order to promote tort reform. So in the film “Hot Coffee” it uses the case, Liebeck v. McDonalds, as an example of large corporations trying to promote the tort reform, in which has many advantages and disadvantages to the United States judicial system.
McDonald’s had as many as 700 reports of coffee that scalded customers, creating injuries (Gerlin, 1994, p.1).
IN CONSIDERATION OF THE COVENANTS and agreements contained in this Sales Agreement the parties to this Agreement agree as follows:
Coffee drinkers all have one thing in common; they want their coffee made to their specification. Most soft drinks, milkshakes, and draft beer are ready made. Coffee has many flavors and that can be an operational nightmare. Starbucks has 10 different types of coffee beans, 12 blends of flavors and loads of special toppings.
Implied terms are terms that are assumed and expected to be carried out. They do not have to be communicated since it would be reasonable to assume that both parties are aware of them. To put this into context let’s take the example of the man at the restaurant. He orders his meal, eats his meal and then walks out the restaurant instead of paying at the end. He claims he was never asked to pay, so he doesn’t need to. He is in the wrong since it is an implied term that after a meal the customer must pay the restaurant for their order. If he walks out without paying he is breaching the contract and breaking the law. The restaurant are entitled to sue for damages and use the law against the customer.
First of all, Coffee-Mate´s main benefit is its ability to replace cream or real milk. Furthermore, it can be stored for a much longer time than milk or cream making it a good substitute. People who cannot drink coffee without milk don’t need to carry around or look for milk since coffee mate will do the same job. In addition it is made of health promoting ingredients such as dried glucose and vegetable fat. However it cannot be legally defined as non-diary since it also contains milk derivatives. This can be considered a benefit to Coffee-Mate when it comes to customers who like the flavour and thus also makes them use less sugar for sure. Another