Cattaneo v. American Airlines, Inc. (N.D. Cal. Sept. 24, 2015). The passenger/plaintiff traveled roundtrip on American’s flights between LAX and Cozumel, Mexico, via DFW, in June 2011. In her complaint filed in November 2014, the plaintiff alleged that, during the DFW-LAX flight, a flight attendant gave her “an unlidded cup of hot water,” which spilled on her lap when the aircraft encountered turbulence, causing injuries.
American moved to dismiss on the ground that the plaintiff’s claims were time-barred by Article 35(1) of the Montreal Convention, which extinguishes the right to damages if an action is not commenced within two years “from the date of arrival at the destination.” American noted that the Convention applied even though the alleged injury occurred during the domestic DFW-LAX flight because, under Article 1(2), “international carriage” triggering the application of the Convention exists “where or not there be a break in the carriage.”
The plaintiff responded by arguing that the Convention did not apply because the DFW-LAX flight was “completely domestic.” The court agreed with American, finding that the plaintiff’s itinerary, which included same-day travel from Cozumel to LAX, objectively demonstrated that the DFW-LAX flight was “part of her longer international trip.” Accordingly, the court granted American’s motion to dismiss.