Eastern Air Lines, Inc. v. McDonnell Douglas Corp.

532 F.2d 957 (1976)

Study Aids
Case Briefs Overview
Casebooks
Case Briefs
E
From our private database of 46,300+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Eastern Air Lines, Inc. v. McDonnell Douglas Corp.

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
532 F.2d 957 (1976)

DM
Play video

Facts

In early 1965, Eastern Air Lines, Inc. (Eastern) (plaintiff) contracted to purchase planes from McDonnell Douglas Corp. (MDC) (defendant). The contract excused MDC from delivery delays caused by events outside of MDC’s fault or control, including but not limited to governmental acts or priorities. Over the next two years, the United States radically increased its military involvement in Vietnam. The Defense Production Act empowered the government to require that manufacturers prioritize military production over civilian obligations. Formal directives under the act were rarely given. Rather, the government typically “jawboned” manufacturers through informal requests issued under threat of a formal directive. In this manner, the government urged MDC to prioritize military production, which it did. As a result, MDC did not timely deliver planes to Eastern, which sued. A jury returned a verdict for Eastern, and MDC appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Ainsworth, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 810,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials

  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 810,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 810,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,300 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership

Casebooks

Contracts
Sales

Key Terms