A Florida man has launched a lawsuit against an Outback Steakhouse after enduring severe injuries when a toilet he was using unexpectedly shattered beneath him.

Michael Green initiated legal proceedings on December 9 in Marion County, naming Outback Steakhouse of Florida, LLC, as the defendant. The incident in question took place on March 26 at the Ocala branch of the Australian-themed restaurant, situated at 3215 SW College Road.

The lawsuit, which was accessed by Ocala News, details how Green was in the handicap stall when the toilet he was seated on suddenly collapsed and broke, causing him to fall and sustain injuries.

Green asserts that the incident resulted in “significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function and/or permanent and significant scarring,” as stated in the legal document.

Beyond the physical injuries, Green claims the ordeal has led to ongoing suffering, affecting his ability to work and incurring medical expenses.

His legal team argues that negligence on the part of the restaurant was a factor, citing the establishment’s failure to properly secure the toilet to the floor as a key oversite.

Green is seeking damages in excess of $50,000, exclusive of interest and costs.

The Daily Mail has reached out to Outback Steakhouse’s parent company, Bloomin’ Brands, and Dan Newlin & Partners, the law firm representing Green, for comment.

Michael Green filed a lawsuit against Outback Steakhouse of Florida, LLC, for an excess of $50,000

Green claimed that a toilet he sat on while at the restaurant in March collapsed and caused him ‘significant and permanent loss of an important bodily function and/or permanent and significant scarring’ [Stock Image]

Bloomin’ Brands, which also owns Carrabba’s Italian Grill, Bonefish Grill, and Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, operates around 1,450 restaurants worldwide, more than 670 of them Outbacks.

For decades, the Australian-themed brand was the nation’s No. 1 steakhouse, outselling rivals like Texas Roadhouse and LongHorn.

But in the past few years, both chains have overtaken it, winning over price-sensitive diners with cheaper steaks, simpler menus and livelier atmospheres.

Several locations have quietly served their last Bloomin’ Onions in recent weeks, with parent company Bloomin’ Brands confirming a new round of shutdowns — including at least two restaurants in Florida, where the chain was founded in 1988.

Outback’s Elizabeth Daly said the closures followed ‘a periodic review’ as part of the company’s ongoing turnaround plan.

‘We considered a variety of factors, including sales and traffic, trade areas, and potential investments to improve performance,’ she said, adding that affected staff would be offered jobs at nearby restaurants when possible.

Green claimed that he continues to suffer from the incident, which allegedly led to a loss of wages and medical expenses

The newly shuttered restaurants include two in Birmingham, Alabama — one on 20th Street North at 20 Midtown and another in Inverness on US 280 — along with locations in Jacksonville Beach and Naples, Florida; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Silver Spring, Maryland; Merrick, New York; and Madison, Wisconsin.

The closures come about 20 months after Bloomin’ Brands axed 41 restaurants in February 2024 — most of them Outbacks — as part of an earlier cost-cutting effort.

In 2021, a woman was captured on camera naked destroying the bar at a different Outback location in Ocala before being shot with a stun gun and taken into custody.

Tina Kindred, 53, could be seen standing naked on top of the bar at the restaurant on Silver Springs Blvd.

In a video of the incident, she begins trashing the bar, pulling each bottle down one by one and smashing them on the ground.

When police responded, Kindred threw bottles at police officers.

When she got too close, the officer deployed a taser, knocking Kindred to the ground as the cop yelled at her to get on her stomach as he threatened to use it again.

After Kindred was tased, she was placed in handcuffs before being transported to Advent Health for treatment.

She was charged with aggravated battery on law enforcement, as well as felony criminal mischief.