A tad off-topic: I saw a mini-expose about the elderly New Mexico woman who won a ~$700,000 settlement some years ago against McDonalds for spilling hot coffee in her lap. Her story has been twisted around, making her look like a opportunist, when in fact she only wanted MD’s to pay about ten grand for medical bills (yes, she was badly burned and needed skin grafts). MD’s just laughed and offered a few hundred bucks, and in response her lawyer instigated the multi-million dollar lawsuit, that was reduced by a judge. Bottom line, she was wrongly portrayed in the media as a grifting opportunist.
Unless the coffee has oil in it, the local boiling point is as hot as it can get. She was old enough to know the risk. Asking for a red cent from McDonalds was too much.
The issue is not how badly she was injured. The issue is who is responsible. If she spilled because she was rear-ended by the car behind her, that would be the person operating that car. If she spilled because the driver of the car she was in lurched forward, it would be that person’s responsibility. If the bottom just fell out of the cup due to a manufacturing defect, that would be a responsibility shared by McDonalds and the cup manufacturer.
So she wasn't a "grifting opportunist;" however, the coffee was supposed to be hot and it wasn't McD's fault that she spilled it in her crotch.