Great news! Out of more than 1,000 motion picture entries, “Hot Coffee” will be featured in the Documentary Competition at the Sundance Film Festival. The film’s director and creator, Susan Saladoff, deserves great praise for her endeavor. The movie is a documentary about Stella Liebeck, who spilled coffee on herself and sued McDonald’s for her burn injury.
Many people continue to talk about this infamous case stemming from serious burns to Stella Liebeck. Stella was not driving when the coffee spilled – she was a passenger. In fact, the driver had pulled the car over so that she could add cream and sugar to the coffee. She placed the coffee cup between her knees and attempted to remove the lid. The coffee then spilled in her lap. The 79 year-old woman was wearing sweatpants at the time. Her pants actually absorbed the coffee and held it right on her skin. She suffered third degree burns (which are considered “full thickness”) to her inner thighs and groin area. Although she incurred $20,000 in medical bills for her harms and losses, McDonald’s only offered her $800. McDonalds also denied a request that the coffee temparature be reduced in the future – a request that was backed up by a burn institute in Cincinatti.
Stella only asked for $20,000 to pay for her medical bills. McDonald’s refused to cover her losses and THAT’s why this case went to trial. Individuals and companies in favor of “tort reform” have planted the notion that this was a frivolous lawsuit. This is simply not true. This elderly lady incurred massive expenses and suffered serious injury as a result of McDonald’s negligence and complete disregard for the safety of its consumers. Stella did not want to file any lawsuit but was forced to do so. She was injured – badly. She incurred losses at the hands of another. Isn’t that exactly what lawsuits are designed to do – to compensate someone for her harms and losses due to someone else’s neglect?
It turns out that there was strong evidence that McDonald’s was on notice of over 700 claims of burns fom 1982-1992. It still didn’t reduce the heat of its coffee. Yet many people immediately criticized Stella for rightfully pursuing her claim. Most likely, many of the Stella opponents didn’t even know the whole story. The movie “Hot Coffee” sets the record straight. It illustrates the lengths this poor woman had to go to in order to be compensated. The film also explores why this case became such a media focus.
You can read more about the Sundance film below:
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