Narkiewicz-Laine v. Scandinavian Airline Systems
United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
587 F. Supp. 2d 888 (2008)
- Written by Sara Adams, JD
Facts
The United States was a party to the Montreal Convention, which was passed to replace the Warsaw Convention. The Montreal Convention applied to the international transport of people, baggage, or cargo by an aircraft carrier receiving payment for its service and included a provision establishing air-carrier liability for damages caused by flight delays. Article 29 of the Montreal Convention stated that tort and contract actions for damages from air transport were subject to the provisions of the Montreal Convention, including its liability limitations. Article 29 was equivalent to Article 24 of the Warsaw Convention, except that Article 29 applied not only to cargo transport, but also to the transport of passengers and baggage. Christian Narkiewicz-Laine (plaintiff) sued Scandinavian Airlines Systems (SAS) (defendant) in Illinois state court for breach of contract. Narkiewicz-Laine made two allegations against SAS under Illinois state law: (1) that he suffered damages because of a delayed SAS flight, and (2) that SAS failed to refund or rebook a ticket after he notified SAS that he was ill and unable to travel. SAS removed the case to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, which was in the Seventh Circuit. Narkiewicz-Laine moved to remand the case, and SAS moved to transfer venue to a different division of the Northern District of Illinois. SAS argued that federal courts had federal-question jurisdiction over the action because the action arose under the Montreal Convention, a treaty in which the United States was a participant, and the Montreal Convention completely preempted the state-law claims asserted by Narkiewicz-Laine.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Reinhard, J.)
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