Always read the fine print: Lessons learned from Disney court case
Disney is walking back its theory that no one with a Disney+ account can take the company to court.
Driving the news: Disney has agreed to have a wrongful death lawsuit in Florida handled in court after initially arguing that the case should go to arbitration. The reasoning? The widower of the deceased had forfeited his right to sue the company when he signed up for Disney+.
- The man, whose wife died from an allergic reaction at a Disney World restaurant last year, had signed up for a trial of the streaming service back in 2019.
- Buried deep in the Disney+ terms and conditions is a clause agreeing to take any grievances with the company to arbitration instead of court.
Why it matters: The case serves as a reminder that so few of us understand the hundreds of jargon-filled pages that make up the terms of conditions for the services we use every day. According to a Deloitte survey, 91% of US consumers don’t even read them.
Zoom out: Another study found that out of 543 university students who signed up for a fake social media platform, all of them agreed to the terms of conditions — including a clause in the contract giving up the rights to their firstborn child. Yikes.
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