1998/06/01 by Denney G. Rutherford · 1 citation
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Psychology · #Food Safety and Hygiene #Punitive damages #Damages #Verdict #Jury #Blame #Business #Law #Political science #Psychology
paper · doi:10.1177/001088049803900314
openalex publication_date 1998/06/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/05/21
Debate about blame and contributory negligence raged when a jury in New Mexico awarded Stella Liebeck 160,000 in compensatory damages and 2.7 million in punitive damages after she spilled a cup of McDonald's coffee in her lap. The coffee was served from a drive-through window at a temperature exceeding 180°F (82°C) and caused third-degree burns. Even though similar burn accidents (and settlements) had preceded this celebrated case, McDonald's (and possibly other QSRs) had apparently not sufficiently reduced the service temperature of its coffee from the industry standard of 185°F. A two-year study of a convenience sample of QSR restaurants (including McDonald's) in the U.S. Pacific northwest region following the Liebeck verdict found a mean coffee temperature of 167°F (75°C) and a range of 132° to 195°F (55° to 90°C). Moreover, some restaurants offered oral or written warnings, albeit not universally.