Disney Agrees To $9.5M Preliminary Settlement In Magic Key Annual Pass Lawsuit

The Walt Disney Co. has agreed to pay $9.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over the Magic Key annual pass program at Disneyland, according to a court filing Thursday.

The lawsuit, filed in 2021 by Jenale Nielsen and other pass holders in Orange County Superior Court, alleged that after Nielsen bought the $1,399 annual pass in September 2021, she found she was not able to reserve a ticket for much of November, despite tickets still being available for that month.

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The lawsuit alleged that Disneyland artificially limited Magic Key reservations and the number of Magic Key holders who could visit on any given day. The case was removed to federal court in April 2022.

“After purchasing her pass, plaintiff learned that she was unable to use the Dream Key pass to make a reservation on some days, even when the parks were not at capacity and general admission park reservations were listed as available on Disney’s website,” according to the proposed settlement.

“As alleged in her operative complaint, on numerous occasions, plaintiff was unable to use her pass to make reservations because her desired dates were `unavailable,’ despite Disney’s website listing plenty of
availability for daily ticket reservations.”

The proposed settlement filed Thursday covers 103,435 Dream Key pass holders from Aug. 15-Oct. 25, 2021. The preliminary agreement estimates each class member will receive about $67.41.

A hearing on the motion to settle the lawsuit is scheduled for October 16 in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles.

City News Service contributed to this report.

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