Segway Lawsuit With Disney Update

[mcjaco]

As per the Sentinel: They Gone.

 

Judge dismisses lawsuit against Disney

 

Scott Powers and Jason Garcia

 

Sentinel Staff Writers

 

11:54 AM EST, February 21, 2008

 

 

A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit against Walt Disney World aimed at forcing the company to allow disabled visitors to ride two-wheeled Segways in its theme parks.

 

U.S. District Judge Gregory A. Presnell dismissed the suit from U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida on Wednesday after agreeing with Walt Disney World's contention that none of the three people who sued had any standing to do so, because none of them demonstrated any intention to visit the resort in the near future.

 

"We asked for dismissal and the court agreed it was appropriate," Disney World Acting Vice President Jacquee Polak stated this morning. "We provide a variety of accommodations to guests with disabilities, which allow them to fully enjoy our theme parks."

 

The three plaintiffs -- a man and woman from Illinois and a woman from Iowa -- sued in November, contending that Disney violates the Americans with Disabilities Act by forbidding guests from using the upright scooters within its parks. One of them has multiple sclerosis, another has Lou Gehrig's disease and the third lost his foot in a 1999 accident; all cannot walk and say they now rely on Segways for mobility.

 

None of their lawyers was immediately available this morning to comment on Presnell's order.

 

The three had been seeking class-action lawsuit status, which could have potentially opened the case up to thousands of Segway users nationwide.

 

Disney says it has safety concerns about allowing Segways to maneuver through its often-crowded parks and that it has no practical way to gauge whether a Segway user entering a park is adequately trained on the scooters. SeaWorld Orlando also bars Segways.

 

Both theme-park companies say they make other accommodations for disabled customers by allowing motorized wheelchairs and conventional motorized scooters.

 

Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel

 

Glad to see there are at least a few judges with common sense still out there. I'm so proud to hail from Illinois.

[ECZenith]

I definately support this decision, and not just because I work for the mouse. Some people who rent ECVs in the parks are dangerous enough as it is, running over guests' feet and slamming into people waiting for the parade, we see it all out there... nevermind something like a segway which could potentially cause more damage.

 

Park-rented ECVs aren't even allowed in the elevator at my attraction, because so many people who aren't used to driving them slam them into the doors on the other side of the elevator. The doors been replaced at least twice before they banned them.

[Teacups Make Me Sick]

Why would people need to use segway's as opposed to the EVC's?

 

IMO-People can really be J/O's and waste tax $ by going into these stupid lawsuits...thank god the judge threw that one out.

 

[AllenA07]

What I wonder is if somebody who was planning on visiting the park is going to try to bring the same suit. This case was dismissed because of no reason other then the lack of standing. There is no ruling whatsoever on if Segways should be allowed at the park. Basically you can't sue if you're not somehow (and believe me, somehow is a broad term)hurt, and these people in no conceivable way were hurt. This has nothing to do with the judge lacking (or having great deals of) common sense, any judge in the United States (at least federal) would have had to dismiss this case.

 

--Allen (who hopes to become the TPR legal analyst.)

[disneylanddork50]

This was another way for a person to get cheap cash from Disney. I don't see the problem with Segways in the park. What is the problem with that. And aren't the Segways only used for guided tours? Or can you rent them for your own pleasure?

[jackskellington101]

I still think with the right parameters, the Segway is a good device to use in the park, but the judge did the right thing here.

[Jew]

If any suit actually makes it through the courts, I am sure Disney will be arguing that the ADA doesn't even apply to Segways. I believe the ADA has specific wording regarding what a building has to accommodate, and Segways definitely are not on there.

 

Long story short, the ADA requires them to make reasonable accommodations. They rent wheelchairs and ECV's and all their venues/transportation/etc. are accessible to wheelchairs and ECV's. That's more than reasonable IMO.

[ginzo]

The plaintiffs in this case were real douche bags for suing when they don't even have plans to visit the resort. Get a life already.

[mcjaco]

What I wonder is if somebody who was planning on visiting the park is going to try to bring the same suit. This case was dismissed because of no reason other then the lack of standing. There is no ruling whatsoever on if Segways should be allowed at the park. Basically you can't sue if you're not somehow (and believe me, somehow is a broad term)hurt, and these people in no conceivable way were hurt. This has nothing to do with the judge lacking (or having great deals of) common sense, any judge in the United States (at least federal) would have had to dismiss this case.

 

--Allen (who hopes to become the TPR legal analyst.)

 

You must be delusional if you think that all judges have common sense.

 

I spent too many years defending cases because of moronic judges.

[cfc]

I agree with Joey here--the emphasis should be on "reasonable," and I can't think of any parks more reasonable than Disney when it comes to accomodating the disabled.

 

Whether this is the end of this is another story. My guess is that, eventually, somebody will try to enter a Disney park while riding a Segway, will be denied, and will sue, thus forcing the courts to determine whether Disney (and, by extension, other parks) will have to allow Segways for the disabled in the future.

[jackskellington101]

^ As long as the Segway is not FDA approved as a medical device and if it is not considered an ADA compliant device, even in the court system, there's very little the consumer can do. Because of the legal issues between Dean Kamen and Johnson & Johnson about using the same technologies, technologies that Johnson & Johnson own in the medical field, in the Segway as his joint venture project the iBOT wheelchair, I doubt it FDA approval for a medical device will come soon. That won't happen simply because the moment it does, Johnson & Johnson will hunt down and sue liberally.

 

Disney does as is necessary by the law. I, again, see the Segway as a great alternative because, in the right hands, it's more maneuverable than an ECV or wheelchair and takes up a smaller footprint. It also can allow people outside the Segway to stop the person on the Segway with very little to no force. But, Disney doesn't want the added liability, understandably so, and are doing what is needed by the law..

[AllenA07]

What I wonder is if somebody who was planning on visiting the park is going to try to bring the same suit. This case was dismissed because of no reason other then the lack of standing. There is no ruling whatsoever on if Segways should be allowed at the park. Basically you can't sue if you're not somehow (and believe me, somehow is a broad term)hurt, and these people in no conceivable way were hurt. This has nothing to do with the judge lacking (or having great deals of) common sense, any judge in the United States (at least federal) would have had to dismiss this case.

 

--Allen (who hopes to become the TPR legal analyst.)

 

You must be delusional if you think that all judges have common sense.

 

I spent too many years defending cases because of moronic judges.

 

I fully agree that not all judges have common sense, I'm just saying that this case appeared to be a very open and shut matter. The people were in no plausible way hurt, hence I think most judges would have had to find that they lacked standing to bring the suit.

[Alpenguy]

Tangling with Disney lawyers in a frivilous manner never, ever results with an idiot walking away with cash.

 

It's like walking into a court with Talespin Sher Khan.

[ahecht]

I've been run into by someone going full speed on a Seqway, and had my foot run over by one, and neither hurt. I also have a scar from someone hitting me with an ECV. Plus, people on Segways (especially the P series) take up much less pathway space than an ECV or a wheelchair (or for that matter a stroller).

 

If they had a policy to limit Segways to the "slow key" (which limits the top speed), people using them could make the park a much nicer place for pedestrians.