Overlawyered » amusement parks

Roller coasters and limbless guests

Walter Olson — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 06:02:08 +0000

A 17-year-old born without hands is disappointed at being excluded from Sea World’s “Kraken,” but “Katie Champagne’s misery is the result of a litigious society, not heartless theme parks.” [Beth Kassab, Orlando Sentinel; error corrected on name of theme park operator, thanks commenter P. McC.]

Tags: amusement parks

Roller coasters and limbless guests is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Before being suspended over hungry crocodiles

Walter Olson — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 18:13:59 +0000

You’ll need to sign a really strong liability release [St. Petersburg Times]

Tags: amusement parks, animals, Florida

Before being suspended over hungry crocodiles is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

U.K.: “Butlins bans bumping on the bumper cars”

Walter Olson — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 05:23:18 +0000

The best-known operator of British amusement parks has ordered its staff “to ban anyone found guilty of bumping into each other in the electric cars equipped with huge bumpers. Bemused customers who assume that the ‘no bumping sign’ is in jest are told to drive around slowly in circles rather than crash into anyone else for fear of an injury that could result in the resort being sued.” [Louise Gray, Telegraph via Free-Range Kids]

Also: California appellate court rejects assumption of risk defense and denies summary judgment to bumper car injury claim [Bill Childs, MassTort.org]

Tags: amusement parks, assumption of risk, recreation, United Kingdom

U.K.: “Butlins bans bumping on the bumper cars” is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Life imitates legal cliche: injury plaintiff winds up owning amusement park

Walter Olson — Fri, 06 May 2011 05:12:43 +0000

Pruett Nance was hurt riding an all-terrain vehicle on the grounds of a no-longer-operating theme park in Arkansas, Dogpatch USA. The owners having not paid a $650,000 judgment, a judge has awarded Nance ownership of the park. [Arkansas Online via Childs, TortsProf]

Tags: amusement parks, Arkansas, trespassers

Life imitates legal cliche: injury plaintiff winds up owning amusement park is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

October 11 roundup

Walter Olson — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 14:09:19 +0000

“Feds seek to halt inmate’s frequent lawsuits” [AP; J.L. Riches]
“SeaWorld Blasts ‘Improper’ Suit Over Trainer’s Death” [OnPoint News, earlier]
Does new NY law serve as road map for charities that wish to defy donor intent? [CultureGrrl]
Cruise ship case an example of tensions that arise when defense lawyers jump fence to join plaintiffs’ side [Julie Kay, DBR]
More on Connecticut AG Richard Blumenthal’s “my lawsuits create jobs” stance [Bainbridge; related, New York Times Magazine (opponent MacMahon: "His business is suing people.")]
Australia: “Autistic student sues over test” [The Age]
“The most conservative court? Hardly” [Jacoby, Globe] And Justice Breyer, for one, has “rejected the notion that the U.S. Supreme Court has a pro-business slant and said the court doesn’t rule in favor of companies any more frequently than it has historically.” [Bloomberg via Adler, Volokh]
“Abducted by aliens? Call now for compensation” [four years ago on Overlawyered; Germany]

Tags: amusement parks, Australia, charitable trusts, defense lawyers, Jonathan Lee Riches, Richard Blumenthal, Supreme Court

October 11 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

SeaWorld lawsuit: seeing orca attack traumatized our kid

Walter Olson — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 05:21:43 +0000

“A New Hampshire family who witnessed the Feb. 24 death of a killer-whale trainer at SeaWorld Orlando has sued the company in state court in Orlando, claiming their child was traumatized by the event.” [Orlando Sentinel]

Tags: amusement parks, emotional distress

SeaWorld lawsuit: seeing orca attack traumatized our kid is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

“Sick Duck: Did Tigger and Donald Duck grope women at Disney World?”

Walter Olson — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 14:47:14 +0000

William Saletan investigates a curious genre of harassment case [Slate; more at Atlantic Wire]

Tags: amusement parks, child abuse, Disney, harassment law

“Sick Duck: Did Tigger and Donald Duck grope women at Disney World?” is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

May 5 roundup

Walter Olson — Wed, 05 May 2010 19:04:11 +0000

Jury rules for Disney in case of man who said Tower of Terror theme park ride caused him to have stroke [Orlando Sentinel]
The most dangerous place on earth is getting caught between Dick Blumenthal and a television camera.” Craigslist snipes back against demagogic Connecticut AG [Craigslist blog, Antle/American Spectator, earlier]
U.K.: prisoner falls from bunk bed, wins £4.7m [Times Online]
New York Times jealously guards its own sources’ right to speak with anonymity, doesn’t feel quite that way about others’ [Stoll]
SUNY Buffalo mathematician/HuffPo blogger: why’d they let that awful Eugene Volokh into the country? [Volokh vs. Jonathan David Farley, Greenfield, background]
College journalist won’t face criminal trespass charges after all in showdown over photographing escaped cows [Romenesko and update]
Regulating “the American palate” — by what authority? [Healy, Examiner] More links on FDA salt regulation [Compton/CEI, ShopFloor (on CSPI), earlier here, here, etc.]
Why one putative beneficiary decided not to file $2 claim after settlement of AT&T class action [Chidem Kurdas, Christian Science Monitor]

Tags: amusement parks, class action settlements, Craigslist, Disney, prisoners, Richard Blumenthal, salt, United Kingdom

May 5 roundup is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Disneyland’s babysitter list

Walter Olson — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 05:13:17 +0000

Cory Doctorow describes what sounds like a heavily lawyered-up recommendation process. [Flickr]

Tags: amusement parks, Disney

Disneyland’s babysitter list is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Welcome Above the Law readers (Sea World killer whale lawsuit?)

Walter Olson — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:55:05 +0000

Reporting on possible legal angles arising from a veteran trainer’s death, the popular blog links to this post of ours from last year about how Florida amusement and theme parks appear to be aggressive and successful in defending against litigation.

Tags: amusement parks, animals

Welcome Above the Law readers (Sea World killer whale lawsuit?) is a post from Overlawyered - Chronicling the high cost of our legal system