An 8-year-old American girl receives $800,000 in compensation after being burned by McDonald’s chicken nuggets

This isn’t the first time someone has sued McDonald’s for burns. In the 1990s, there was an infamous case by Stella Liebeck (81). A case that has since been widely imitated in the United States.

Liebeck had ordered a coffee through Drive-thru From McDonald’s. She held the coffee between her legs as she tried to remove the lid to add the milk. Eventually the coffee spilled on her lap. She suffered third-degree burns to her legs, thigh, and buttocks. She spent more than a week in the hospital.

She asked McDonald’s for $20,000 (€18,000) to pay the hospital bill. McDonald’s didn’t want to pay more than $800 (€720), so they went to court. It was initially awarded $2.7 million (2.4 million euros) in compensation. Later that was reduced to $640,000 (€575,000).

Liebeck had persistent medical complaints of burns and had to be treated for the rest of her life. She died 10 years later at the age of 91. According to her surviving relatives, the entire compensation was used to cover her medical expenses.