PHILADELPHIA – After a Northeastern Pennsylvania man claimed in state court that he received first and second-degree burns from Starbucks coffee which spilled onto his lap, one of the defendants named in the action has removed the case to federal court.
Tyler Essex of Dunmore initially filed suit in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas on Nov. 8 versus Starbucks Coffee Company and Starbucks Corporation of Seattle, Wash., Petrogas Group US, Inc. of Plainview, N.Y., Applegreen USA Welcome Centres, LLC of Ewing, N.J., John Does 1-10 and ABC Corporations 1-10.
“On or about Sept.8, 2023, at approximately 4:40 p.m., plaintiff and his brother, Brandon Essex, stopped at the Hickory Run Service Plaza in Jim Thorpe, PA. At all material times, defendants owned, controlled, possessed, managed or was otherwise responsible for the Starbucks store located in the Hickory Run Service Plaza. Plaintiff Tyler Essex, waited in the car while his brother, Brandon went in and purchased coffee at the Starbucks location inside,” the suit said.
“Plaintiff was a business invitee on defendants’ property at the time of the incident and thus, defendants owed him a duty to take all reasonable measures and precautions to discover, warn and remove all dangers they knew or should have known about. Brandon Essex entered the Hickory Run Service Plaza and went to Starbucks, where he ordered Tyler Essex a coffee with two creams and two sugars. The Starbucks employees put extremely hot black coffee filled to the absolute rim in one coffee cup, and provided Brandon Essex with another coffee cup with cream in it and two sugar packets, rather than placing the milk and sugar in the coffee as ordered. Brandon Essex brought the coffee in the car to plaintiff Tyler Essex and handed it to him, and plaintiff intended to add the cream and sugar to the black coffee.”
The suit added that due to the overfilling of the cup of extremely hot black coffee, the coffee was filled to the rim, which made the rim flimsy and the lid not stable on the coffee cup – and as a result of overfilling with extremely hot coffee, the lid popped off and the coffee spilled on plaintiff’s lower stomach, pelvis, penis, testicles and legs.
“As a direct and proximate result of the carelessness and negligence of defendants, plaintiff Tyler Essex sustained serious and permanent injuries that caused a serious
impairment of body function, including without limitation, injuries to his muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves, skin, legs, genitals, second-degree burns, first-degree burns, scarring, hypersensitivity, anxiety, mental anguish and aggravation of pre-existing conditions, if any, some or all of which injuries may be permanent; plaintiff also makes claims for injuries and losses of which he has no present knowledge,” the suit stated.
“As a further result of this accident, and by reason of the injuries as aforesaid, plaintiff has suffered and, in the future, may continue to suffer great pain and agony, mental anguish and humiliation and has been, and may in the future, be hindered from attending to his daily duties, function and occupation, to his great detriment and loss.”
On Dec. 14, defendant Applegreen USA Welcome Centres, LLC removed the action to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, pointing to complete diversity of citizenship between the parties and the amount of damages in question reaching the federal threshold of $75,000.
For a lone count of negligence, the plaintiff is seeking damages, individually, jointly, severally and vicariously, in a sum greater than $50,000, plus interest, delay damages, punitive damages and costs of suit.
The plaintiff is represented by Theodore C. Levy and Colleen J. Borum of Fine & Staud, in Philadelphia.
Defendant Applegreen USA Welcome Centres, LLC is represented by David G. Volk of Cipriani & Werner, in Blue Bell.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case 2:23-cv-04952
Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas case 231001045
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com