Saturday, December 16, 2006

Breastfeeding Legal Update - Vermont (Delta/Freedom/Mesa)

Freedom and Delta airlines have asked that the complaint filed with the Vermont Human Rights Commission against them be dismissed. (link)
[Emily] Gillette is arguing that her civil rights were violated because breast-feeding is a right protected by Vermont's Public Accommodations Law.
Freedom Airlines argued in a Monday letter to the Human Rights Commission that the federal Airlines Deregulation Act trumps Vermont's human rights law, because state law cannot interfere with air carrier service.
Delta is, not surprisingly, arguing that since the flight attendant was a Freedom employee, they are not a proper party to the complaint.

In this case, the plane was on the ground so there is (apparently) no jurisdictional or choice-of- law question. If the plane was in the air, however, what then? Sounds like a law exam question to me.


(HT: Amy)

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