PORTLAND, Maine (AP) – Plans for a lawsuit against a Maine venue that hosted what became a “super-broadcaster” wedding reception underscore the risks of responsibility for small businesses amid the coronavirus pandemic and an upward push by Republicans in Congress to give these facilities legal immunity.
Behemoths like Walmart and Tyson Foods, which have been targeted by COVID-19-related lawsuits, can largely absorb the losses. But hundreds of negligence lawsuits have been filed across the country, and mothers and octopuses fear the possibility of a lawsuit that could put them ahead.
“They can end up losing even if they win a lawsuit,” said David Clough of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, because costly litigation can bankrupt small businesses that don’t have deep pockets.
For the family-owned Big Moose Inn in Millinocket, Maine, it’s not a theoretical issue. The estates of at least three nursing home residents, whose deaths were linked to a wedding reception back in August, are intended to sue the inn and the nursing home, the families’ attorney said. , Timothy Kenlan.
The wedding and reception sparked outbreaks that infected at least 180 people and killed at least eight people, state officials said. Seven of the dead were residents at the Maplecrest nursing home in Madison, Maine, whose attorney declined to comment.
A notice of complaint indicates that damages will be claimed from the hostel for having organized an event that Kenlan claims to have violated state security protocols during a pandemic.
“What stands out here is blatant behavior. They put the benefits ahead of the people, “Kenlan said.” They were breaking the rules. “
Paul Mo, a lawyer for the Big Moose Inn, said there was no way to prove the wedding reception was the source of infections. There were several other events, including a trip to a lake and the wedding at a nearby church, that were equally likely to have been the source of infections, he said.
The number of guests at the inn exceeded the state limit of 50 people, the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. But Brown argues the business tried to follow the rules by splitting the reception into two groups of less than 50, so there was no violation, he said.
During the reception, signs warned guests to wear masks and to keep their distance, but at that time there was no mandate to enforce these rules.
A Hunton Andrews Kurth national claims tracker indicates that more than 6,000 coronavirus-related complaints have been filed nationwide.
Many involve attacks against pandemic restrictions, while others have targeted banks and insurers, and there have also been thousands of workers ’compensation claims, said Alexandra Cunningham of the Richmond law firm.
But a much smaller figure (about 270 individual lawsuits) are claims for default of death, personal injury or occupational safety, mostly aimed at cruise ships, meat processing plants and other businesses, including nursing homes, he said.
The lawsuits usually focus on the most egregious cases.
A lawsuit at a Tyson Foods plant in Iowa said workers had no masks and were forced to work together, while managers were betting on how many workers would become infected during a coronavirus outbreak. Tyson investigated in response to the lawsuit and fired seven executives.
Walmart is the subject of an illegal death lawsuit after a worker died of complications from COVID-19 in March. A class action lawsuit is aimed at McDonald’s. The ACLU sued on behalf of workers in a Nebraska butcher pants. And a federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by Amazon warehouse workers.
“While there are very few cases, these cases are really important because they represent critical workers’ safety cases, ”said Julia Duncan of the American Justice Association, which represents trial attorneys.
These large corporations can better withstand demand than small businesses like the Big Moose Inn, for which legal costs and damages could be paralyzed.
Republican efforts to protect companies from legal liability were a turning point in Congress over a more than $ 900 billion pandemic aid package.
Many Democrats oppose a shield of responsibility and to say that the Trump administration has already given companies advantage in matters of security by relaxing the protections of workers.
The issue of civil liability has been left out for now, but it will be the new year again and state lawmakers are likely to weigh in as well, said Clough, the state director of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, which represents close of 3,000 small and independent companies. companies in Maine.
Before setting aside the issue of liability, the discussion focused on corporate immunity, except in cases of “gross negligence,” which litigation lawyers criticize as a fantastic way to dress full liability for lawsuits. against viruses. There have not been enough lawsuits to justify special protections, trial lawyers say.
While the spectrum of lawsuits worries business owners, it may be difficult for plaintiffs to prove that they have detected the virus in a specific establishment or that they have shown negligence, because security rules and guidelines have evolved. Masks, for example, were not initially recommended; they are now recommended and sometimes required.
Lawsuits require a plaintiff to prove both harm and negligence: an entity could not protect someone from a reasonably foreseeable fact, said Jim Burke, professor emeritus at the University of Maine Law School.
Demonstrating where someone contracted the virus is critical to winning a lawsuit, and that was difficult even before the last wave of the virus, Burke said. “As the community spreads more widely, it will be harder to prove causation,” he said.
For the Big Moose Inn, his attorney believes some form of liability protection is guaranteed.
“If a company meets the requirements, it does the best it can, making the effort to keep employees and guests safe, there should be some shield of responsibility,” Brown said. “If they’re working and trying hard, they shouldn’t be penalized for something that’s really out of their control.”
Most lawyers are likely to wait to see how lawsuits like the one filed against Big Moose Inn are developed, Cunningham said.
The statute of limitations for negligence claims is generally two to three years, he said.