No Mickey Mousing Around

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In court, Disney cultivates other pluses. Attorney Carl Hovland's experience with one case is typical. A woman and her son were taking Disneyland's Autopia car ride in 1975 when a 16-ft.-long branch from a eucalyptus tree fell in their path. They stopped their car, but others rammed them from behind. Hovland figured he could win on several points: a tree in rotten condition, a poorly designed roadway and cars without headrests. After a seven-week trial, the jury deliberated only 1 1/2 hours. Verdict: zip.

Disney brought in its own tree expert, who keeps a book on every tree in the park. Says Hovland: "His image, German accent--everything was perfect. He couldn't explain why the tree fell. And if he couldn't, who could? The jury decided it was an act of God." Disney's squeaky- clean employees ("who all wore Mickey Mouse watches and buttons," notes Hovland) testified in reverential tones. Sighs the attorney: "You'd ask them who designed this ride, and they'd say, 'Walt.' " Disney also requested an on-site visit for the jurors, a common company tactic, say lawyers. Hovland successfully objected, so Disney brought the cars to the courthouse parking lot instead. The jurors were entranced. Says Hovland: "Here I was trying to convince them that the cars were dangerous, and they were asking the judge if they could go for a ride."

Disney's final trump card is that both of its parks are located in communities that are more than happy to have them and the jobs they generate. Pressing a case against the company on its home ground, contends Florida Attorney James Sisserson, is "like suing God in the Vatican." Lawyers find they have to tread a very fine line, says Hovland, between admitting "we all love Disney and noting that even the most perfect person makes a mistake once in awhile." But jurors by and large remain unconvinced about Disney's fallibility.

Even some plaintiffs' attorneys seem to have nagging doubts about attacking the Magic Kingdom. Says Stanley Jacobs, a Los Angeles lawyer who has lost only six cases in 25 years of practice, two of them to Disney: "I have never been as impressed with an operation as I have been with the Disneyland amusement park. I think Disney wins because it deserves to most of the time."