Disney+ subscribers unknowingly waived their right to sue after a fatal allergic reaction. Jeffrey Piccolo’s lawsuit against Walt Disney World’s parent company highlights how forced arbitration clauses in streaming terms of service can strip consumers of court access. Unlike public trials, arbitration proceedings are private, final, and biased toward corporations, with consumers winning just 21-33% of cases versus 89% in small claims courts. Supreme Court rulings have expanded corporate power to enforce arbitration, making it nearly impossible to challenge decisions. $30 claims become unaffordable to litigate individually, silencing ordinary people.

States like California are pushing back via laws like the Private Attorneys General Act, allowing state intervention in arbitrations. The justices’ growing deference to corporate arbitration could reshape America’s justice system, creating a two-tiered system where only the wealthy retain legal recourse.