In David v. United Airlines, Inc., the plaintiff, an eighty-six-year-old man, brought claims of negligence and breach of contract against United Airlines after United downgraded him from first class to coach class on an international flight. The plaintiff, who was "invited to attend the Maccabiah Games in Israel as an esteemed guest of Israeli government officials," purchased two first-class tickets: one for himself and one for a student journalist covering the games for a local television station.
The plaintiff traveled from Los Angeles, California, to Newark, New Jersey, without incident, but was advised that he was being downgraded from first class to "Economy Premier/Plus" as he attempted to board the connecting flight to Tel Aviv. The plaintiff objected, noting his edema and the resultant need to stretch out his legs to avoid swelling, but ultimately acquiesced to the switch after learning that no first-class seats would be available until the next day.
The plaintiff claimed that the downgraded seat assignment resulted in bodily injuries that required him to remain in bed for the first three days of his trip, and caused him discomfort for the remainder of his time in Israel. The court first held that the plaintiff's negligence and breach of the contract claims were preempted by the Montreal Convention. The court then ruled that a downgraded seat assignment is not an Article 17 "accident," as it is not unexpected or unusual in terms of industry standard or practice." In so holding, the court cited to the terms of United's Contract of Carriage, which provide that "reserved seating assignments are subject to change without any notice for any reason." Other arguments attempting to qualify the incident as an "accident"—(1) failure of United to accommodate his request due to a pre-existing medical condition and (2) exacerbation of his edema—were similarly rejected by the district court. Of note, there is no indication that the plaintiff argued that United violated the Air Carrier Access Act. The district court then granted summary judgment in favor of United. David v. United Airlines, Inc., No. 2:15-cv-02262, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 52457 (C.D. Cal. Apr. 18, 2016).
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