Disney World alligator attack: Company could face $100m lawsuit, say legal experts

The body of two-year-old Lane Graves was recovered by police divers

Lane Graves and his family were on vacation from Nebraska (Reuters)

Disney World could be liable for a huge multi-million dollar pay-out following the fatal Florida alligator attack, if it is found guilty of having to failed to ensure the safety of its guests.

Personal injury lawyers said the company could be liable for an “eight figure payout” if it was found liable in a wrongful death lawsuit. If there were aggravating factors and it was found the company had put its business interests ahead of safety, a pay-out could total as much as $100,000,000, said Matt Morgan a personal injury expert from Orlando.

Other experts said they anticipated that Disney would seek to make an out of court settlement, if it was sued, rather than ensure a lengthy, damaging legal battle.

Alligators are common throughout Florida (AFP)

Lane Graves was snatched by an alligator late on Tuesday evening at the Seven Seas Lagoon at Disney World’s Grand Floridian Resort and Spa near Orlando. The two-year-old was on holiday with his parents, Matt and Melissa Graves, from Elkhorn, Nebraska.

Police on Wednesday recovered the toddler’s body, close to where he was snatched while wading on Tuesday evening. Police said that the role of Disney was being investigated as part of an ongoing criminal investigation. Disney said it had closed the beaches on its resorts.

So far, there has been no word on whether the toddler’s family will launch a lawsuit. In a statement, the Graves family said: “Words cannot describe the shock and grief our family is experiencing over the loss of our son. To all of the local authorities and staff who worked tirelessly these past 24 hours, we express our deepest gratitude.”

In the aftermath of the attack, Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger called the boy’s family and publicly offered condolences. George Kalogridis, president of Walt Disney World, flew back to Florida from Shanghai. And a statement of sympathy from Kalogridis was posted on the official Disney Parks blog.

Mr Morgan told The Independent that in many instances where a family lost a loved one, grief turned to anger, along wide a need to hold someone accountable. He said a wrongful death lawsuit could be filed if it was believed Disney had not informed its guests of a danger, or could have done more to ensure visitors were kept safe.

Mr Morgan said that the fact that the family was from Nebraska and had no experience of alligators was another factor that might be important. He said it was possible that a jury could award punitive damages against Disney totaling “nine figures”.

“The only instance for that is if it is shown during discovery that Disney put its own business interests ahead of the safety of the guests using their property,” he said.

This week, police said the snatching of the the two-year-old was the first incident of its kind during the 45 years that Disney has operated its world famous resorts. However, a flurry of reports have emerged of incidents where people were injured by alligators at the resorts, albeit not fatally.

Paul Santamaria was attacked as a child in 1986 when he his family was visiting Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. “As a kid I just knew that I was in trouble,” he told local media this week. He spent a week in hospital, after his siblings fought off the creature.

“I was feeding ducks near the water’s edge and there was an alligator submerged under the water where you couldn’t see it and it came up out of the water and hit me and knocked me on the ground.”


 Sheriff Jerry Demings (right) reveaked this week that the toddler's body had been 
 (AP)

It was also reported that Disney had been told that its guest were feeding alligators at some of the resorts. There are signs that warn people not to swim but nothing to deter them from wading.

Sam Singer, a crisis communications manager who represented the San Francisco Zoo after a tiger escaped and killed a teenage boy there in 2007, told Reuters that Disney was now also struggling with an image problem

“When people think of Disney they think of magic, the unbelievable, and everything is going to be fun,” he said. “This incident flies in the face of that.”

Disney plans to open its “Frozen” attraction at Epcot next week as scheduled, a spokeswoman said, though it has canceled a press event to preview the ride.

Disney did not immediately respond to inquiries.