Southwest Airline’s Early Bird Check-in

May 2015: After the judge granted the airline’s motion to strike the class allegations, this action was voluntarily dismissed When a complaint is dismissed with prejudice, it cannot be refiled., the reasons for which have not been disclosed.

January 2015: A federal judge granted most of Southwest Airline’s motion to dismiss this class-action lawsuit. Among other things, the judge dismissed the false advertising claims finding that they were preempted by the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA). The judge allowed some of the other claims – including the breach of contract claims – to move forward

November 2014: A class-action lawsuit was filed against Southwest Airlines for allegedly deceptively marketing the “Early Bird Check-In” add-on as guaranteeing automatic check-in and assigning a “priority” boarding position 12 hours before general check-in begins (i.e., consumers who purchase the “Early Bird” add-on are checked-in 36 hours before a flight’s departure rather than the general check-in time, which begins 24 hours before a flight’s departure). According to the complaint, individuals who did not purchase the “Early Bird Check-In” add-on received a higher boarding position than plaintiffs, who did purchase the “Early Bird Check-In.” (Zammetti and Lowry et al v. Southwest Airlines, Co. and Does 1-50, Case No. 14-cv-01792, C. D. CA.).

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