RFT 373: Recline-Gate
From CNN Travel:
A woman who's become an icon in the debate over whether it's OK to recline your airplane seat said she was "scared to death" by how a flight attendant handled her painful ordeal.Wendi Williams, who said she's a teacher in Virginia Beach, tweeted footage of a man repeatedly hitting the back of her reclined seat with his fist during an American Airlines flight in January.But what viewers saw in the video wasn't even the worst of it, Williams told CNN's "New Day."A passenger filmed a man repeatedly pushing her reclined seat with his fist. Who's wrong here?Before she started shooting, the man behind her "started punching me in the back, hard," Williams said Tuesday."I tried to get the flight attendants' attention. They were not paying attention, so I started videoing him. That was the only thing that I could think of to get him to stop."Earlier in the flight from New Orleans to Charlotte, Williams said the man behind her asked "with an attitude" to return her seat to the upright position so he could eat from the tray table, she said.She obliged and moved her seat back up. But when the man was done eating, Williams said she reclined her seat once again.That's when he started "hammering away," she said. "He was angry that I reclined my seat and punched it about 9 times - HARD," Williams tweeted.
I'm done being quiet! I've had extensive neck surgeries - my cervical spine is completely fused, except for C1. You can contact me.
She also tweeted that she was injured, and that the incident caused pain."I have 1 cervical disk left that isn't fused," she wrote."I've lost time at work, had to visit a doctor, got X-rays, and have has [sic] horrible headaches for a week."After she started filming the man, "he did stop punching as hard," she told CNN. "So it did work to a certain degree."But Williams said she was stunned by what happened when she tried to get a flight attendant to help.She said she tried to alert a flight attendant as soon as the punching started. But the employee "rolled her eyes" at Williams and offered the man she accused of hitting her seat some complimentary rum, Williams tweeted.The great reclining debate: Is it OK to push your seat back?After that, the flight attendant handed her a stern form letter, titled "Passenger Disturbance Notice.""Notice: YOUR BEHAVIOR MAY BE IN VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW," the letter reads."You should immediately cease if you wish to avoid prosecution and your removal from this aircraft at the next point of arrival.""It was shocking," Williams told CNN."I think the more calm I remained, (the flight attendant) got angrier and more aggravated. So she said, 'I'm not talking to you anymore. I'm done with you,' or 'I'm done with this,' something to that effect, and then handed me this passenger disturbance notice."After that, the flight attendant told her, "'I will have you escorted off the plane if you say anything else. Delete the video,'" Williams said. "And I was scared to death."She said she's looking into possible legal action.In a statement to CNN, American Airlines said it was aware of the January 31 "customer dispute" aboard American Eagle flight 4392, operated by Republic Airways. "The safety and comfort of our customers and team members is our top priority, and our team is looking into the issue," American said. Airline passengers are entitled to "fly rights," outlined by the US Department of Transportation, when they buy a plane ticket. Those ensure airlines will do things like provide passengers with water when delayed on the tarmac or, if overbooked, ask passengers for volunteers before others are bumped off involuntarily.But comfort and personal space are not among those rights.Air travel dos and don'ts are wildly divisive and regularly broken. Everything from who has ownership over the armrest (etiquette experts told CNN in 2014 the passenger in the middle seat gets both) to which animals qualify as "emotional support" creatures (a new federal proposal would ban ESAs like peacocks, potbelly pigs and iguanas from flights) have ignited fierce debate.Still, there's an expectation that when you fly, you'll respect other passengers and make the best of your cramped surroundings.Punching the back of a passenger's seat is impolite, according to many of the people who responded on Williams' Twitter feed. But was Williams in the wrong, too, for encroaching on the man's already limited personal space?Lilit Marcus, CNN Travel's Hong Kong-based editor, wrote in November that reclining should be reserved for "special occasions.""Reclining is a way of asserting that your travel needs, and only yours, matter," she wrote. "People are fine with doing it, but no one likes it when it happens to them."Delta CEO gives advice on seat reclining. Several of them told CNN in December that reclining is rude, particularly for passengers seated in economy class who already have restricted leg room. One reader said that because of her body type, if the passenger in front of her reclines their seat, she loses the ability to use the tray table to work while flying. Even Delta Air Lines' CEO has weighed in. In April 2019, Delta retrofitted many of its jets to reduce how far the coach and first-class seats could recline. A spokeswoman told CNN it was part of the airline's "continued efforts to make the in-flight experience more enjoyable." "It's all about protecting customers' personal space and minimizing disruptions to multitasking in-flight," the spokesperson said at the time. In an appearance on CNBC, company CEO Ed Bastian said while he doesn't recline his seat in the sky, people should have the right to -- as long as they ask permission."If you're going to recline into somebody, you ask if it's OK first," Bastian said. "I never recline, because I don't think it's something as CEO I should be doing, and I never say anything if someone reclines into me."
From RJ Law Firm:
Understanding the eggshell skull rule and how it applies to personal injury cases in Texas.
The eggshell skull rule—also called the thin skull rule—says that you take your victim as you find them. Essentially, the frailty of the person who was injured cannot be used as a defense to limit the liability of the at-fault party.
What this means is that even in cases where the injuries were worse that one normally would have expected, the negligent party is still legally responsible for ALL consequences, including compensating the victim for any and all related medical bills. The defendant cannot rely on the victim’s vulnerability to avoid liability.
While the term “eggshell skull” hints at its application in cases where the victim suffered a serious head injury or brain damage due to having a weaker-than-normal skull, it actually encompasses any pre-existing vulnerabilities or medical conditions the victim has. If, for example, a victim with hemophilia suffers serious blood loss and misses weeks of work after what was an otherwise minor injury, the person who caused the injury is still on the hook for every penny of their medical bills, lost wages, etc.
Basis of the eggshell skull rule.
The thought process behind the eggshell skull rule is that compensating an injured person for any harm the defendant actually caused him or her is the only fair thing to do. What this means is that the defendant has an obligation to accept the plaintiff (victim) just as he is, including any medical conditions that are not clearly visible. On the other hand, the defendant has no obligation to provide a higher duty of care when it involves an eggshell plaintiff; the duty of care is the same, even when the plaintiff suffers from a pre-existing mental or physical condition.
There are a few situations which can complicate the eggshell skull rule; specifically intervening causes and issues of comparative negligence. When an intervening cause (an event that occurs after the initial act of negligence and breaks the chain of causation) causes an additional injury of further aggravates the initial injury, the court will likely rule that those particular damages were unforeseeable and thus not the responsibility of the original defendant (although you can likely seek compensation from the second party for those damages as well).
If the plaintiff puts him or herself in harm’s way or contributes to the severity of his or her injuries by way of their own actions (e.g., thinned blood due to alcohol intoxication leading to excessive bleeding), the total amount of compensation awarded may be reduced by the victim’s own percentage of comparative negligence. If the jury determines that the victim suffered $100,000 in damages, but also places 10% of the negligence on the victim, the victim will only be awarded $90,000.
The final decision still remains with the court.
When there is a possibility a plaintiff may have suffered more injuries than the average person because of pre-existing health conditions, the victim’s attorney will present this information to the judge, and the judge will decide whether the eggshell skull rule applies in this individual case. If it does, the jury must consider this when they calculate the amount of damages the victim should receive. The judge will instruct them to consider the entire amount of damages—even if those damages are higher than what the average person would incur.
If you or a loved one has suffered an injury or wrongful death that may fall under the eggshell skull rule, it’s vital that you have an attorney look into the facts of your case as soon as possible. You only get one shot at bringing your case, and failing to correctly apply (and successfully argue) this rule in court can severely limit the potential value of your case.