Bones in boneless chicken wings can be expected

Bones in “boneless” chicken wings can be expected, ruled the Ohio Supreme Court recently, ending a yearslong legal battle by a customer who sued a restaurant and its chicken suppliers and demanded compensation for injuries he suffered after he found the namesake dish had bones in it.

Michael Berkheimer fell ill after consuming boneless chicken wings at Wings on Brookwood restaurant in Hamilton, Ohio. Doctors found a more than an inch-long bone lodged into his esophagus, leading to serious health issues and two surgeries.

Berkheimer claimed that the restaurant and suppliers were negligent for not warning customers that the “boneless” wings might contain bones.

In a 4-3 verdict, the court decided the term “boneless” describes a cooking style rather than a guarantee that the wings have no bones.

However, the dissenting justices argued that the case should have gone to a jury, stating that most people expect boneless to mean without bones.

Notably, they also warned that the legal precedent could protect food places serving gluten and lactose dishes to people with respective allergies.

Not the first

Last year, Buffalo Wild Wings was sued by a customer who alleged the chain “knowingly misrepresented” its boneless wings as actual chicken wings.