Michael Austin v. Princess Cruise Lines Ltd

I. INTRODUCTION

This case arises out of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Grand Princess—a cruise ship operated by Princess Cruise Lines, Ltd. (“Princess Cruises” or “Defendant’’). The Grand Princess departed out of San Francisco for Hawaii on February 21, 2020, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic in America. The ship had 3,533 people on board: 2,422 passengers and 1,111 crew. As of March 6, 46 people on the ship had been tested, and 21 tested positive—numbers which would rise precipitously in the coming weeks. On March 9, the Grand Princess docked at the Port of Oakland. That same day, Plaintiffs Ronald and Eva Weissberger (“the Weissbergers”), still on the ship, filed this lawsuit against Princess Cruises, alleging negligence and gross negligence. Although the Weissbergers did not test positive for SARS- CoV-2 or suffer symptoms of COVID-19, they seek to recover emotional distress damages based on their fear of contracting COVID-19 while quarantined on the ship, as well as punitive damages. Over the ensuing months, numerous lawsuits against Princess Cruises followed. A large portion of these lawsuits are virtually identical to that filed by the Weissbergers. These…