Boneless chicken wings do not have to be bone-free, an Ohio top court ruled, denying a lawsuit filed by a man who fell ill after swallowing a piece of bone from his order.
Michael Berkheimer sued Wings on Brookwood in 2016, claiming the restaurant failed to warn him that the boneless wings could, in fact, contain bones. A piece of bone became lodged in his throat and caused an infection.
The court on Thursday ruled that “boneless wing” refers to “cooking style” and is not to be taken literally. The 4-3 ruling was peppered with dissent, with one judge calling the majority opinion “utter jabberwocky.” However, the majority of judges considered being cautious of bones in a boneless wing to be common sense.
Writing for the majority, Justice Joseph T. Deters said: “A diner reading ‘boneless wings’ on a menu would no more believe that the restaurant was warranting the absence of bones in the items than believe that the items were made from chicken wings, just as a person eating ‘chicken fingers’ would know that he had not been served fingers.
The chicken wing controversy began in 2016 when Michael Berkheimer was dining with his wife and friends at a restaurant in Hamilton, Ohio. Berkheimer ordered what has been described as his “usual”—boneless wings with parmesan garlic sauce—when he noticed a piece go down uncomfortably. Shortly after, he began to feel feverish and went to the emergency room. Doctors discovered a long, thin bone that caused a tear in his esophagus and a severe infection.
Berkheimer then sued the restaurant, accusing them of failing to warn him that the boneless wings could contain bones. His lawsuit also accused the supplier and distributor of the wings. The lower courts dismissed Mr. Berkheimer’s suit, which then landed in the Supreme Court.
