Northwest, Inc. v. Ginsberg
United States Supreme Court
572 U.S. 273 (2014)

- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Rabbi S. Binyomin Ginsberg (plaintiff) was a member of Northwest Airlines’ (defendant) frequent-flier program. Northwest terminated Ginsberg’s membership because Ginsberg allegedly abused the program. Ginsberg filed a class-action lawsuit against Northwest in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. He argued that Northwest’s termination of his membership violated the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Northwest moved to dismiss Ginsberg’s good-faith-and-fair-dealing claim on the grounds that it was preempted by the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978. The district court granted Northwest’s motion. The Ninth Circuit reversed. The United States Supreme Court granted cert.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Alito, J.)
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