Credit: Inside the MagicDisney Experiences, the division formerly known as Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, has won a huge lawsuit over COVID-19 vaccines, safety protocols, and alleged discrimination, giving the company a much-needed legal victory.
The Walt Disney Company is widely known as one of the more litigious corporations in the world, historically prone to issuing lawsuits for everything from copyright infringement (even if Disney itself was mining IP from public domain fairytales) to First Amendment violations to, infamously, daycare murals. But, in recent years, Disney has found itself as much the target of legal action as the originator of it.
In 2022, a number of former Walt Disney World Cast Members sued the company over various issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, claiming that it had violated federal and state civil rights laws, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Florida Constitution, and Florida statutes on whistleblowing.
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A lawsuit brought by Tamara Wolverton, who claimed that she was fired over COVID-19 protocols requiring her to wear a mask, caught public notice. The lawsuit was later joined by fellow former Walt Disney World Cast Members Steven Gibbons, Cheron Hayes, Cathryn Koepke, and Seth Schmidt.
Eventually, a court ordered the amassed claimants to pursue individual legal action and to file “his or her claims only as they relate to the corporations relevant to his or her employment.” Steven Gibbons filed his own suit against Disney Parks due to his experiences at Walt Disney World, claiming that his religious objections to receiving a COVID-19 vaccine led to discrimination and eventual firing. Unfortunately for Mr. Gibbons, all of his complaints have been thoroughly dismissed by the Middle District Court of Florida, Orlando Division.
In his lawsuit, Steven Gibbons claimed that (among other things) Disney had violated the Civil Rights Acts because he had refused to take a COVID-19 vaccine on religious grounds and that augmented safety protocols requiring him to wear a mask caused him to have “breathing difficulties” and that he “struggled to perform his job” while wearing one.
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However, in a lengthy decision, U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway has dismissed all eight counts that Gibbons brought against Disney, handing the company a complete victory and, likely, massive precedent in related cases. In a brief summary, the judge said, “Gibbons has failed to state a claim for disparate treatment and disparate impact because he has not alleged enough factual content to render either claim plausible. Gibbons’s discrimination claims under Title VII and the FCRA are dismissed without prejudice and without leave to amend.”
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It remains to be seen if Mr. Gibbons attempts to appeal the counts that were not dismissed with prejudice. At least for now, Disney has yet another legal win under its belt.
The full text of Steven Gibbons’ lawsuit and the dismissals can be read below:
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