A former franchise manager blamed the McDonald's corporation for making him gain 65 pounds over a 12-year employment period, so he sued the company. A Brazilian court weighed the case, then ruled this week that the now-hefty former employee of the fast-food giant is entitled to his just desserts and awarded him $17,500.
The 32-year-old man, whose identity has not been released, says he was forced to sample Mickey Dee's fatty array of goods on a daily basis as part of his job description. The man also claimed that the world's largest restaurant chain would often send "mystery shoppers" to check on the quality of the food and service, so everything had to be up to standard at all times.
And free daily lunches, which also helped to increase the man's waistline, were one of the perks of working for the company.
Presiding Judge Joao Ghisleni Filho said McDonald's could appeal the ruling, and the Brazilian headquarters told the Associated Press that it is considering its legal options.
In the course of the company's 70 years, McDonald's has been the center of its fair share of lawsuits and legal entanglements. On Wednesday, a New York City judge ruled against a group that filed a joint lawsuit against McDonald's, claiming the company was the cause of childhood obesity.
A McDonald's spokesperson released a statement in response:
"We are extremely pleased with the court's decision," McDonald's spokeswoman Heidi Barker said in a statement released to Bloomberg News. "As we have maintained throughout these proceedings, it is unfair to blame McDonald's for this complex societal problem."