Spanner
Spanner v. United Airlines, Inc.
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Fletcher, J.
Robert A. Spanner sued United Airlines, Inc. (“United”) for $7418.90, the full value of a lost piece of luggage and its contents. United argued that its liability was limited to $9.07 per pound of luggage lost pursuant to the Warsaw Convention, an international treaty. 1 The district court agreed with United. We reverse.
Facts and Proceedings Below
On April 24, 1997, appellant Spanner and his wife returned to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) after a two-week trip to New Zealand. Spanner had traveled on Air New Zealand between Auckland and Los Angeles. Spanner’s Air New Zealand “claim checks” did not contain his ticket number, the number and weight of his bags, or a statement that his travel was subject to the rules of the Warsaw Convention.
At Los Angeles International Airport, Spanner and his wife deplaned, took possession of their luggage, cleared customs, and then checked their luggage on appel-lee United Airlines to San Francisco. Although the “claim checks” for the luggage remained the same as those issued by Air New Zealand, Spanner also received from United a ticket called a “Plane Ticket and Baggage Check” (“PTBC”). United’s form PTBC contains a complete…