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Conflict of Laws Keyed to Brilmayer
Richards v. United States
Citation:
369 U.S. 1 (1962)Facts
An American Airlines plane en route from Tulsa, Oklahoma to New York, New York crashed in Missouri resulting in the death of all passengers on board. Plaintiffs, Richards and other surviving family members of the deceased passengers, received a settlement from American Airlines in the amount of $15,000.00, which was the maximum amount recoverable under Missouri law.
Plaintiffs brought suit in federal district court against the U.S. government, arguing that the Federal Aviation Agency failed to enforce relevant statutes and regulations of the Federal Tort Claims Act concerning the practices of American Airlines in the Tulsa overhaul depot. The parties agreed that the negligence occurred in Oklahoma and the injury occurred in Missouri. Missouri had a maximum recoverable amount for wrongful death, while Oklahoma did not.
The district court concluded that if Oklahoma law were applied to the Plaintiffs’ claim, then Oklahoma choice of laws rules applied as well. As a result, after applying Oklahoma choice of laws rules, the district court applied Missouri law to the issue of damages and dismissed the complaint due to the settlement American Airlines gave to the decedents’ family members. Plaintiffs appealed. The appellate court affirmed. Plaintiffs appealed to the Supreme Court.
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