Wrongful death lawsuit against Disney that got national attention over Disney+ terms ends

A widower who sued Disney and a Disney Springs restaurant in a high-profile 2024 case after his wife died on their Orlando vacation has voluntarily dismissed his lawsuit, court records show.

Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan, who had severe food allergies, died after eating at Disney Springs’ Raglan Road Raglan Road Irish Pub and Restaurant in 2023. The 2024 lawsuit filed by her husband, Jeffrey Piccolo, against Disney and Raglan Road made national headlines not only for Tangsuan‘s death, but for Disney’s legal strategy to fight the Orange Circuit Court complaint.

Disney used obscure terms in its user agreement for Disney+ subscribers and theme park ticket purchases to try to force the lawsuit into arbitration. Piccolo’s attorney struck back and called Disney’s strategy “preposterous” and “absurd” in a court filing, adding that it “borders on the surreal.”

Florida Politics broke the story about Disney’s strategy, and as The New York Times and other media outlets covered the case, Disney caved under growing public pressure and agreed to drop the arbitration pursuit.

“With such unique circumstances as the ones in this case, we believe this situation warrants a sensitive approach to expedite a resolution for the family who have experienced such a painful loss,” Josh D’Amaro, who has since been named the next Walt Disney Co. CEO, said in a statement at the time.

Court records do not indicate if a settlement has been reached. Disney and the restaurant did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday morning.

“I have no comment other than this matter has been resolved,” said Piccolo’s attorney, Brian Denney.

The Orange County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Tangsuan’s Oct. 5, 2023, death an accident, citing the cause of death as anaphylaxis, records showed.

According to the lawsuit, the Disney Springs restaurant ignored her repeated warnings that she needed allergen-free food because of her extreme allergies to dairy and nuts.

She ordered broccoli and corn fritters, scallops, vegan Shepherd’s pie and onion rings.

“When the waiter returned with Kanokporn Tangsuan’s food, some of the items did not have allergen free flags in them and Kanokporn Tangsuan and Jeffrey Piccolo once again questioned the waiter who, once again, guaranteed the food being delivered to Kanokporn Tangsuan was allergen free,” the lawsuit said.

She ate at 8 p.m. and after the meal, split up with her family to go shopping in Disney Springs. Forty-five minutes later, alone, she collapsed. She gave herself an EpiPen shot but tragically, she died in the hospital, away from her husband and her mother-in-law.

Tangsuan, whose nickname was “Amy,” was a first-generation American born from immigrants from Thailand and was a beloved doctor in New York. 

Questions about Tangsuan’s death will likely remain hidden from the public.

Before the case was dismissed, Disney had been fighting to keep the food testing results from Tangsuan’s frozen leftovers confidential. 

“It is unclear what good faith basis Disney has to designate the results of the food testing as confidential, which would keep the results shrouded in secrecy,” Piccolo’s attorney said in a court filing in October.