• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

U.S. Court of Appeals, 7th Circuit, Rules Government Can't Be Sued Over Mid-Air Crash

Posted on: Tuesday, 9 August 2005, 12:00 CDT

(This article originally ran in Lawyers Weekly USA, Boston, MA, another Dolan Media publication.)

Wrongful death plaintiffs could not recover damages from the federal government for the alleged negligence of a private contractor hired by the FAA to provide air traffic control services at a regional airport where a midair collision occurred, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled.

Relatives of the plaintiffs died in the collision of two private planes near a Chicago-area airport.

The plaintiffs alleged that the collision was the result of the negligence of an air traffic controller employed by a private contractor hired by the FAA to provide air traffic control services. They sued the government under the Federal Tort Claims Act.

The government claimed that the plaintiffs could not sue because the controller was not a federal employee and the act only imposes liability for the negligence or wrongful conduct of an employee of the government.

The plaintiffs argued the act's limitation of liability did not apply in this case because the FAA lacks the authority to subcontract air traffic control services.

But the court disagreed, holding federal law clearly authorizes the FAA to enter into contracts as necessary, including for services to operate the air traffic control facilities.

In addition, the court found that the claim was barred by the discretionary function exception.

In this case, the government's decision to contract out air traffic control services was based on budgetary concerns, as well as a desire to reopen smaller air traffic control locations - both of which are clearly policy decisions. Thus, the discretionary function exemption protects the government from liability for claims premised on the lack of training, oversight, or qualifications of air traffic controllers, since the government acted within its discretion to contract those responsibilities out to [the private contractor], the court said.

Alinsky v. U.S.; No. 04-2877; July 13, 2005.

Source: St. Louis Daily Record / St. Louis Countian

More News in this Category