Watson v. Air Methods Corp.

After plaintiff filed suit against Air Methods for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy, Air Methods removed the case to federal court and moved to dismiss based on the pre-emption provision of the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA), 49 U.S.C. 41713(b)(1). The district court relied on Botz v. Omni Air International, 286 F.3d 488 (8thCir. 2002), and dismissed the complaint. The Eighth Circuit reversed, holding that the ADA did not expressly preempt plaintiff's state-law wrongful-discharge claims involving post hoc reporting of alleged violations of air-safety regulations. To the extent that the court's opinion in Botz held otherwise, the court overruled it. View "Watson v. Air Methods Corp." on Justia Law