Article: McDonald's Lawsuit

[Guest guest]

For those of you interested in this ridiculous

lawsuit:

 

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,76290,00.html

 

NEW YORK — In a major victory for the fast food

industry, a federal judge Wednesday dismissed a widely

watched suit in which McDonald's hamburgers and French

fries were blamed for children's obesity.

 

U.S. District Judge Robert Sweet said the plaintiffs,

including a 14-year-old girl who is 4-foot-10 and 170

pounds, failed to show McDonald's Corp. (MCD) products

presented a danger unknown to consumers. He also cited

concerns the case could " spawn thousands of similar

'McLawsuits " ' against all types of restaurants.

 

" This opinion is guided by the principle that legal

consequences should not attach to the consumption of

hamburgers and other fast food fare unless consumers

are unaware of the dangers of eating such food, " Sweet

said.

 

" If consumers know...the potential ill health effect

of eating at McDonald's, they cannot blame McDonald's

if they, nonetheless, choose to satiate their appetite

with a surfeit of supersized McDonald's products. "

 

Although the judge threw out the suit in it's

entirety, he ruled the plaintiffs could refile claims

in Manhattan federal court within certain limits.

 

Sweet also said McDonald's had rightfully pointed out

that the case was the first of its kind to reach this

stage in federal court and could result in thousands

of copycat cases.

 

The suit was brought on behalf of overweight children

who ate at two McDonald's restaurants in the Bronx

borough of New York City. The plaintiffs sought

unspecified damages, blaming McDonald's for health

problems that included diabetes, coronary heart

disease, high blood pressure and elevated cholesterol.

 

The suit was one of at least four cases filed against

McDonald's and other fast food chains over the obesity

issue. At least two cases have been dropped and

another is dormant.

 

The judge noted that Americans spend more than $110

billion on fast food each year, and cited studies

showing that on any given day in the United States,

almost one in four adults visits a fast-food

restaurant.

 

" The potential for lawsuits is even greater given the

numbers of persons who eat food prepared at other

restaurants in addition to those serving fast food, "

Sweet said, citing reports that show almost half of

the American food dollar is spent on food eaten away

from home.

 

He said the court had a duty to " limit the legal

consequences of wrongs to a controllable degree and to

protect against crushing exposure to liability. "

 

 

 

 

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