This California complaint arose from the death of plaintiff's dog while in American Airlines' care. The dog flew from New York to San Francisco in the cargo area. Upon arrival, the dog was alive, but in physical distress. Plaintiff raised eleven causes of action, including gross negligence, conversion, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, among others.
pbuscaingcomplaint.pdf (211.44 KB)
This California complaint arose from the death of plaintiff's dog while in American Airlines' care. The dog flew from New York to San Francisco in the cargo area. Upon arrival, the dog was alive, but in physical distress. American Airline employees allegedly told plaintiff a veterinarian was coming to see the dog, but the veterinarian never arrived. An employee also allegedly joked on the phone with his manager about the situation while trying to find out the protocol for dealing with the dog. Plaintiff raised eleven causes of action, including gross negligence, conversion, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, among others.
(In 2007, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California denied defendant-airline's motion for summary judgment. The Court found that the contract signed prior to take-off did limit the liability of the airline. However, the airline could be liable because after landing, the man had asked for his dog back, to give it veterinary care, but the airline took more than four hours to give it back. Also, the airline could be liable if the plane temperature had been higher than for which the contract called. Click here to read the case.)