March 9, 2004
House to Vote on Bill to Stop Lawsuits Against Food Provideers
WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives is scheduled to consider a bill Wednesday to prevent obese people from suing the people who sold them the food that made them fat.
Rep. Tom Petri explained:
"It may seem hard for some to believe, but recently a number of lawyers and their clients have made legal claims against the food industry based on the idea that if someone who buys food gets fat, it's the fault of the people who sold him the food.
"Certainly, the idea that you can sue a fast food place for suggesting that you 'Super Size' your meal or that you 'have fries with that' sounds pretty silly to most of us, but some are drawn by the possibility that somewhere they might find a judge or a jury that will accept the argument and award them millions of dollars.
"It may be that the food industry will win every case, but it will spend millions of dollars fighting off these lawsuits.
"It's not just McDonalds, or Wendy's, or Burger King that is threatened. It's every food company in America. If Kentucky Fried Chicken is liable for selling high calorie meals, then so are the local pizzeria, grocery stores and their suppliers.
"So, that's the point of the Personal Responsibility in Food
Consumption Act, which will provide legal liability protection
for food companies from lawsuits arising from individual's
decisions to overeat."
