Deb in IA
07-25-2002, 03:29 PM
or, if you are FAT, just SUE SOMEONE . . .
Fat Suit Filed
Fast-Food Chains Blamed for Obesity, Illnesses
By Geraldine Sealey
July 25 — Some failed dieters blame will power. A class-action lawsuit filed in New York City on Wednesday claims fast-food chains knowingly serve meals that cause obesity and associated illnesses.
Caesar Barber, 57, who reportedly weighs 250 pounds and stands 5-foot-10, claims four chains — McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's and KFC — have jeopardized his health with their greasy, salty fare. He filed the lawsuit in the New York State Supreme Court in the Bronx on behalf of the potentially millions of obese and ill Americans who also feast on fast food.
Barber's lawsuit is the first broad-based action taken against the fast food industry.
"This lawsuit has the potential to put the fast food companies on the run," said John Banzhaf, a professor at George Washington University Law School, who has worked on tobacco litigation and will serve as an adviser to Barber.
The fast food companies, "negligently, recklessly, carelessly and/or intentionally engaged in the distribution, ownership, retail, manufacture, sale, marketing and/or production of food products that are high in fat, salt, sugar, and cholesterol content which numerous studies have shown cause obesity, diabetes, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, elevated cholesterol intake, related cancers, and/or other detrimental and adverse health effects and/or diseases," reads the complaint filed by lead attorney Samuel Hirsch.
As a result of the fast food companies' actions, Barber suffered injuries — he has had two heart attacks and is diabetic — and is entitled to unspecified damages at a jury trial, the lawsuit reads.
A food industry spokesman says he is surprised Barber's lawyer can make his legal argument with a straight face.
"He must be aware that fully two-thirds of all foods consumed in America are consumed in people's homes. Is he proposing that we sue America's moms?" said John Doyle, co-founder of Center for Consumer Freedom, a restaurant industry group.
More troubling is the implication the lawsuit makes about the abilities of Americans to choose what they eat, Doyle said. "To win his suit he has to convince a jury or a judge that people are too stupid to feed themselves or their children. If people are so stupid, should they be allowed to vote or go to work in the morning?"
Can Juries Be Convinced?
There have been at least three previous, narrower lawsuits against the food industry.
McDonald's just settled a $12 million lawsuit and apologized for wrongly describing its French fries as vegetarian. A similar lawsuit was filed against Pizza Hut for allegedly using beef fat in its Veggie Lovers' Pizza.
Another class action law suit claims that the makers of the corn and rice puff snack food "Pirates' Booty" under-represented its fat content by more than 340 percent.
But Barber's lawsuit is the first known legal action to claim that the fast food industry has contributed knowingly to the problem of obesity in America. The U.S. surgeon general said in a report last December that obesity kills an estimated 300,000 Americans each year.
Lawyers, including Banzhaf, have been working on strategies to hold the food industry at least partly responsible for obesity-related costs, just as plaintiff's attorneys have successfully sued tobacco companies for smoking-related illnesses.
The surgeon general estimated that obesity cost us $117 billion just last year.
But even Banzhaf, who has led the charge against the food industry so far, realizes the high hurdle he and plaintiffs such as Barber face in convincing a jury, and the general public, that fat is the fault of corporate America.
"We know from the tobacco litigation that initial suits have real difficulties because the public has real problems accepting new ideas and new concepts," he said. "It took us many years to get us to the point of educating juries about tobacco, so now they are. [Barber's suit] has a great deal of potential."
For its part, McDonald's released a statement calling Barber's lawsuit frivolous.
"Common sense tells you that it makes no sense. McDonald's serves quality food. Our menu features choice and variety with lots of options for consumers," reads the statement.
Comprehensive nutritional information is available at the fast food restaurants and on the company's Web site, the statement read.
Fat Suit Filed
Fast-Food Chains Blamed for Obesity, Illnesses
By Geraldine Sealey
July 25 — Some failed dieters blame will power. A class-action lawsuit filed in New York City on Wednesday claims fast-food chains knowingly serve meals that cause obesity and associated illnesses.
Caesar Barber, 57, who reportedly weighs 250 pounds and stands 5-foot-10, claims four chains — McDonald's, Burger King, Wendy's and KFC — have jeopardized his health with their greasy, salty fare. He filed the lawsuit in the New York State Supreme Court in the Bronx on behalf of the potentially millions of obese and ill Americans who also feast on fast food.
Barber's lawsuit is the first broad-based action taken against the fast food industry.
"This lawsuit has the potential to put the fast food companies on the run," said John Banzhaf, a professor at George Washington University Law School, who has worked on tobacco litigation and will serve as an adviser to Barber.
The fast food companies, "negligently, recklessly, carelessly and/or intentionally engaged in the distribution, ownership, retail, manufacture, sale, marketing and/or production of food products that are high in fat, salt, sugar, and cholesterol content which numerous studies have shown cause obesity, diabetes, coronary heart disease, high blood pressure, strokes, elevated cholesterol intake, related cancers, and/or other detrimental and adverse health effects and/or diseases," reads the complaint filed by lead attorney Samuel Hirsch.
As a result of the fast food companies' actions, Barber suffered injuries — he has had two heart attacks and is diabetic — and is entitled to unspecified damages at a jury trial, the lawsuit reads.
A food industry spokesman says he is surprised Barber's lawyer can make his legal argument with a straight face.
"He must be aware that fully two-thirds of all foods consumed in America are consumed in people's homes. Is he proposing that we sue America's moms?" said John Doyle, co-founder of Center for Consumer Freedom, a restaurant industry group.
More troubling is the implication the lawsuit makes about the abilities of Americans to choose what they eat, Doyle said. "To win his suit he has to convince a jury or a judge that people are too stupid to feed themselves or their children. If people are so stupid, should they be allowed to vote or go to work in the morning?"
Can Juries Be Convinced?
There have been at least three previous, narrower lawsuits against the food industry.
McDonald's just settled a $12 million lawsuit and apologized for wrongly describing its French fries as vegetarian. A similar lawsuit was filed against Pizza Hut for allegedly using beef fat in its Veggie Lovers' Pizza.
Another class action law suit claims that the makers of the corn and rice puff snack food "Pirates' Booty" under-represented its fat content by more than 340 percent.
But Barber's lawsuit is the first known legal action to claim that the fast food industry has contributed knowingly to the problem of obesity in America. The U.S. surgeon general said in a report last December that obesity kills an estimated 300,000 Americans each year.
Lawyers, including Banzhaf, have been working on strategies to hold the food industry at least partly responsible for obesity-related costs, just as plaintiff's attorneys have successfully sued tobacco companies for smoking-related illnesses.
The surgeon general estimated that obesity cost us $117 billion just last year.
But even Banzhaf, who has led the charge against the food industry so far, realizes the high hurdle he and plaintiffs such as Barber face in convincing a jury, and the general public, that fat is the fault of corporate America.
"We know from the tobacco litigation that initial suits have real difficulties because the public has real problems accepting new ideas and new concepts," he said. "It took us many years to get us to the point of educating juries about tobacco, so now they are. [Barber's suit] has a great deal of potential."
For its part, McDonald's released a statement calling Barber's lawsuit frivolous.
"Common sense tells you that it makes no sense. McDonald's serves quality food. Our menu features choice and variety with lots of options for consumers," reads the statement.
Comprehensive nutritional information is available at the fast food restaurants and on the company's Web site, the statement read.