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Starbucks Sued by Woman Burned by Hot Tea
By
John Del Signore
Published May 4, 2010
Modified May 4, 2010
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By
John Del Signore
Published May 4, 2010
Modified May 4, 2010
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A woman is suing Starbucks after sustaining second-degree burns from tea purchased at the 685 Third Avenue location in Manhattan. According to a lawsuit filed in New York State Supreme Court, plaintiff Zeynep Inanli was served tea that was "unreasonably hot, in containers which were not safe." As a result of Starbucks' negligence, she suffered "great physical pain and mental anguish," including the burns, according to the complaint, obtained by Reuters.
Starbucks has yet to comment, but of course there is a precedent for this sort of thing. Back in 1994, a jury ordered McDonald's to pay $2.86 million to a New Mexico woman who scalded herself with the restaurant's coffee. The following year, her lawsuit inspired timeless Seinfeld episode #113, "The Maestro," in which Kramer scalds himself with coffee from "Java World," eventually settling for lifetime free coffee, much to the consternation of attorney Jackie Chiles, who made his debut in that episode.
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hot tea
Jackie Chiles
lawsuit
starbucks
suing
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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