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Walt Disney World Resort is allegedly trying to prevent the release of new information about a fatal incident involving a restaurant on its property.
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In 2024, Disney was named in a wrongful death lawsuit following the death of a diner who ate at Raglan Road, a popular Irish eatery located at Disney Springs. The family of Dr. Kanokporn Tangsuan sued Walt Disney World Resort and Raglan Road after she allegedly suffered a fatal allergic reaction to her meal.
Tangsuan had a dairy and nut allergy, though the party was assured “allergen-free food would be served.”
Dr. Tangsuan ordered vegan shepherd’s pie, onion rings, corn fritters, and scallops, but the lawsuit noted that none of the plates had food labels that would have made the servers aware of the allergens at the table.
After the meal, Tangsuan and the rest of the group went on to shop at Disney Springs. Less than an hour later, Tangsuan visited Planet Hollywood, ultimately suffering a “severe acute allergic reaction from the food served at Raglan Road.”
Tangsaun was able to administer herself epinephrine, but she was still having a severe reaction, and cast members called 911. When emergency services arrived, they were able to get her to the hospital; however, she was pronounced dead when she arrived.
Tangsuan’s cause of death was “as a result of anaphylaxis due to elevated levels of dairy and nut in her system.” The family seeks damages “in excess of $50,000.00 plus costs, post-judgment interest, and further demands trial by jury on all issues so triable.”
Disney tried to force the lawsuit into arbitration, citing the fine print in an agreement customers make when signing up for Disney+. Disney retreated from this strategy after immense backlash.
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The lawsuit has puttered along over the last year, though according to new reporting from Gabrielle Russon for Florida Politics, the team representing Tangsuan now claims Disney and Ragland Road are trying to keep records secret.
“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,” Brian Denney, Piccolo’s lawyer, wrote in a court filing this week.
Interestingly, Disney’s court filing revealed that in the last three years before Tangsuan’s death, five other diners with dietary restrictions were incorrectly served meals at Raglan Road.
“Unbeknownst to him, his beloved wife and partner would be dead within the hour,” Denney said in the court filing. “Amy’s autopsy revealed that she suffered an anaphylactic reaction to dairy despite having repeatedly notified the Raglan Road staff at Disney Springs that she was deathly allergic to dairy.”
Denney accused both Disney and the Irish restaurant of trying to keep records confidential.
“It should be noted that the Defendants have not been making designations in good faith and have been designating almost every document produced as ‘confidential,’” Denney wrote in a recent filing. “Another example involves the designation of Raglan Road’s menu as ‘confidential,’ despite the fact that it is publicly available to anyone who chooses to dine at Raglan Road.”
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