Above the Law: United Passenger Lawyers Up, Will Likely ‘Re-Accommodate’ Airline In Court
I like this part:
George Washington law professor John Banzhaf has a pretty neat argument about United’s liability. Defenders of corporate jackboots and internet lawyers everywhere have been quick to refer to the Contract of Carriage. Technically, you agree to this every time you buy an airline ticket. United’s defenders say that rule 25, “Denied Boarding Compensation,” allowed United to refuse to honor Dao’s ticket in an overbooking situation.Which it does.
But Professor Banzhaf points out that Dao wasn’t “denied boarding.” As George Carlin might say, he wasn’t on the plane, he was “in” the plane. At that point, rule 21, “Refusal of Transport,” should apply to Dao, not rule 25. Banzhaf writes:
Rule 21, entitled “Refusal of Transport,” is very different because it clearly and expressly covers situations in which a passenger who has already boarded the plane can be removed…Intriguing! It makes sense for there to be two very different rules for denying “boarding” and for kicking a person off a plane. For instance, you can deny somebody boarding without beating him up and dragging him through the airport. But it’s actually pretty hard to get somebody out of their seat who doesn’t want to go.The rule, which unlike the denied boarding rule does provide for removal “from the aircraft at any point,” lists some two dozen justifications including: unruly behavior, intoxication, inability to fit into one seat, medical problems or concerns, etc. But nowhere in the list of some two dozen reasons is there anything about over booking, the need to free up seats, the need for seats to accommodate crew members to be used on a different flight etc.
It seems like two issue in this matter are getting mixed together. One is whether United had the right under the contract to remove this passenger. The answer is either yes or no, and if there is a breach of the contract the passenger is entitled to damages.
The other issue has to due with how this man was removed from the plane. I guess I am in the minority, but the passenger was totally in control of how he was treated. He could have objected, but once the decision is made, the smart thing to do would be to gather your things and exit the aircraft, perhaps ranting the whole time, but moving toward the exit. Once back in the airport, raise hell and seek your remedy. But the passenger brought his ill treatment on himself.