MidAtlantic Lawsuit
Update #2 for Mar 31, 2008
Mike Haber is preparing a memo for the plaintiffs which will answer your concerns and fully explain what the judge's ruling really means. I have been reading the web board comments and I see that most people understand the significance of this ruling but there are a few who see this as defeat. If you are viewing this as defeat then you do not understand what has happened.
Ladies and gentlemen: We have just won our DFR lawsuit against ALPA. The judge’s ruling is clear and beyond question. I've even received emails of congratulations from Tracy Parrella and Woody Menear. These are people who understand the legal system and understand what has just happened.
Let me briefly explain what has happened and leave the rest up to Haber:
We went to court to argue against ALPA's motion to dismiss and to get authority to add damages to our lawsuit for the Nicolau Award. Personally, I never expected to succeed with the Nicolau damage claim but we did. ALPA argued that we knew that they had screwed MDA pilots for longer than 6 months before the lawsuit was filed. They provided the 2002 restructuring agreement as evidence. We all know that they are full of crap but the evidence provided to the judge left her short of being convinced beyond a reasonable doubt.
She ruled that the portions of the suit affected by the statute of limitations claim must be dismissed. But this judge is smarter than all of ALPA put together. The judge knew and stated in her ruling that ALPA was guilty of breach in their duty to fairly represent the MDA pilots.
She then opened the door and gave us a huge bonus. She granted the amendment to add damages based on the Nicolau Award AND she put ALPA on notice that they breached their DFR. Basically, ALPA now has a DFR lawsuit on their hands that they already lost as long as Haber can keep the technical legalities (like statute of limitations) aside. If the case is heard on its merits (and it will be) then we have already won.
For those who think that the other issues are dead - guess again. Those issues are the reason a flawed seniority list even existed in the first place. Those issues are very much still alive and will be presented in our DFR case. We will go to court to sue for damages based on the seniority integration that left MDA pilots out. But, the reason that that happen is due to ALPA's failure to protect the MDA pilots as mainline USAirways pilots and provide recall benefit. Everything is related. It's the same issues by a different name. The big difference is that we NOW know how the judge feels about what ALPA did to us.
I guarantee ALPA is taking a crap over this. They have a much bigger problem then they did before. They will be found guilty of DFR if they go to court.
Some have argued that if USAPA wins then the MDA pilots will get the proper seniority integration anyway and that the case will fall apart because there is no damage. I have asked Mike Haber to explain the monetary damage regardless of who wins the election. You will be surprised to learn that the expected dollar amount per pilot is now higher than ever before and does not get impacted by the election.
I know that a few of you said you would never settle for less than $1 million per pilots. But the results of the vote were that an offer of $100,000 per pilots plus legal fees would go to the plaintiffs for a vote. I think this is far more likely of what we can expect based on this latest development. And don't forget, a settlement of this type would only be $28 million dollars. This is what I expect and it is what I always have expected. Those who know me or have read any of my postings know that the $1.2 billion was never attainable. I expect $100,000 apiece plus our legal fees reimbursed. Any offer to settle for that amount or more will then go to vote. Anything short of that will proceed to litigation. And the judge has already ruled that ALPA is guilty.
So, I hope this short explanation allows you to sleep better. We are in a better situation than we have ever been with this DFR suit even though the complaints were dismissed due to the statute. This judge just did us all a favor. She knew ALPA would prevail at litigation due to the statute of limitations so she fixed the problem right now and is allowing us to amend the lawsuit and proceed to litigation with a better than excellent chance for success.
I will forward the memo from Haber as soon as I receive it.
