A widower has dropped his wrongful death lawsuit against Walt Disney World’s parent company over his wife’s fatal food-allergic reaction. Jeffrey Piccolo voluntarily dismissed his claim against the giant theme park and an Irish pub operating on Disney property on February 27, 2026.
New York physician Dr. Kanokporn (Amy) Tangsuan died of a severe allergic reaction on October 5, 2023. About five months later, Piccolo filed a lawsuit on his wife’s behalf in Circuit Court in Orange County, Florida.
The Florida-based firm Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley represented Piccolo in the lawsuit, which sought damages in excess of $50,000. Piccolo’s attorney Brian Denney told Allergic Living simply that “the case has been resolved”. He would make no other comment.
What’s unclear is whether Piccolo simply dropped the lawsuit or whether there has been a financial settlement.
The lawsuit accused Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Raglan Road Irish Pub and its owner The Great Irish Pubs, Inc, of negligence. The claim asserted that the dinner Tangsuan ate at the pub in the Disney Springs shopping complex triggered her fatal reaction. The 42-year-old was severely allergic to dairy and nuts.
The notice concluding the case, “voluntarily dismisses with prejudice all causes of action asserted” against all three of the defendants, according to court documents.
Fatal Reaction
During a vacation in Orlando, Piccolo and Tangsuan had gone out for a meal at the Raglan Road pub along with Piccolo’s mother Jackie Piccolo. The couple from Long Island, New York had clearly communicated to the restaurant staff about Tangsuan’s severe allergies, according to Piccolo’s lawsuit.
In addition to telling the server about her allergies to dairy and nuts multiple times, they also double-checked when her food arrived to ensure it would be safe for her, according to the complaint. Piccolo said staff reassured them that Tangsuan’s meal was prepared free of her allergens.
However, about 45 minutes after her pub meal, Tangsuan began experiencing an anaphylactic reaction while shopping at the Disney Springs complex. The lawsuit says the NYU Langone hospital physician had difficulty breathing when she entered Planet Hollywood. Tangsuan self-administered her epinephrine auto-injector, but soon collapsed. A bystander called 911.
Piccolo and his mother raced to the hospital when they learned of Tangsuan’s reaction, where they were informed she had died.
“The medical examiner’s investigation determined that Kanokporn Tangsuan’s cause of death was as a result of anaphylaxis due to elevated levels of dairy and nut in her system,” according to the lawsuit.
The autopsy report, which Allergic Living has seen, shows that her IgE levels for the two allergens were extremely high. Her lungs showed constriction, inflammation, swelling and mucus. The examiner concluded her death to be an accident.
Disney Lawsuit Controversy
Piccolo’s lawsuit over his wife’s death has had moments of controversy and global headlines.
In May 2024, Disney attorneys filed a motion arguing that Piccolo had forfeited his rights to a jury trial because he had signed up for a Disney+ trial subscription back in 2019. The streaming service’s terms mandate that all disputes with the company would be decided through arbitration, Disney’s motion stated.
Disney dropped its bid to force arbitration over the streaming service’s clause in August 2024, following a barrage of public backlash.
A request for restaurant records was among several motions from both sides in the lawsuit. In November 2024, Piccolo’s attorneys filed a motion over a doggy bag of leftovers from the October 2023 meal that their client had frozen and saved. Both sides had sought guidance on how to proceed regarding the possibility of testing the food sample.
Attorneys were still debating over the food testing issue in October 2025. After the testing results became available, Disney sought to keep the results confidential, according to a motion filed by Piccolo’s attorneys.
“It is unclear what good faith basis Disney has to designate the results of the food testing as confidential, which would keep the results shrouded in secrecy,” attorney Brian Denney wrote in the motion.
Now, after two years and much wrangling, the case has ended.
Related Reading:
Reality Check: What Disney’s Allergy Booking Changes Will Mean
Why Does Asthma Put a Food-Allergic Child at a Higher Risk of Anaphylaxis?
