The Grizzwells by Bill Schorr for November 02, 2016

Or McDonald’s learned not to keep their coffee so freaking hot that spilling it could cause third degree burns.

Facts from the case:

McDonald’s operations manual required the franchisee to hold its coffee at 180 to 190 degrees Fahrenheit.Coffee at that temperature, if spilled, causes third-degree burns in three to seven seconds.The chairman of the department of mechanical engineering and biomechanical engineering at the University of Texas testified that this risk of harm is unacceptable, as did a widely recognized expert on burns, the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Burn Care and Rehabilitation, the leading scholarly publication in the specialty.McDonald’s admitted it had known about the risk of serious burns from its scalding hot coffee for more than 10 years. The risk had repeatedly been brought to its attention through numerous other claims and suits.An expert witness for the company testified that the number of burns was insignificant compared to the billions of cups of coffee the company served each year.At least one juror later told the Wall Street Journal she thought the company wasn’t taking the injuries seriously. To the corporate restaurant giant those 700 injury cases caused by hot coffee seemed relatively rare compared to the millions of cups of coffee served. But, the juror noted, “there was a person behind every number and I don’t think the corporation was attaching enough importance to that.”McDonald’s quality assurance manager testified that McDonald’s coffee, at the temperature at which it was poured into Styrofoam cups, was not fit for consumption because it would burn the mouth and throat.McDonald’s admitted at trial that consumers were unaware of the extent of the risk of serious burns from spilled coffee served at McDonald’s then-required temperature.McDonald’s admitted it did not warn customers of the nature and extent of this risk and could offer no explanation as to why it did not.