Victims of foodborne illness - legal options?

[sorghum]

<p>E. coli is not generally harmful, it is a normal part of the gut microbiota. The specific strain or serotype called E. coli O157:H7 is pathogenic and is the cause of these incidents.</p>

<p>

If so, the restaurant is just unlucky in what it purchased, not guilty of creating the toxin itself. I don’t believe a vicious lawsuit would be ethical in that case.

</p>

<p>I think a law suit is ethical under the legal doctrine that prevails where the incident occurred. In this case, the principle is strict liability, the restaurant did you harm so it should pay.</p>

<p>There is no recourse to blaming bad luck in food safety management. The presence of E. coli O157:H7 comes from fecal contamination, often from cattle manure coming in contact with irrigation water. The producers are responsible for avoiding the contamination, and the sellers are responsible for buying from reliable producers.</p>

<p>If the restaurant thinks it can’t operate a safe salad bar, it should close it.</p>

[Iglooo]

<p>Just curious, what would one sue the restaurant for? just the medical bill or something more? Would you sue before asking them to pay first?</p>

[xaniamom]

<p>^Ironically, D was with us. We stopped to see her on our way to visit friends and took her to dinner. Her and H split a burger and a small pizza. I had a salad (not salad bar) and part of the pizza. She was the only one who got sick so we’re not sure which of the food it was. </p>

<p>She seems better now, but she was one of the victims who spent a night in the hospital. I’m going to try calling today to see if there is anything to be done about the bills.</p>