Lawsuit against filming other passengers in an airplane

[Michael Wechsler]

Jurisdiction

South America

It was reported that a woman who refused to give up her window seat to a crying child on an airplane was filmed in the act by another passenger and later posted on Instagram. The video's popularity soared and the woman stated she was publicly shamed and humiliated (perhaps initially.) But she now is reported to be an "influencer" as a result of the attention adding over 2 million subscribers to her Instagram profile. So the woman sued the airline in Brazil, holding it accountable for the actions of this other passenger.

It is difficult to identify what legal cause of action her lawyers might be justifying this action, although I don't know Brazilian law. The plaintiff's claim that the lawsuit is about being a paragon of justice and liberty to protect the privacy of airline passengers does not ring genuine to me. I'm not sure how anyone could expect the airlines to police phone usage short of banning all cell phones on flights. I don't know Brazilian law but apparently this type of lawsuit is not confined to the US - and I wonder whether we'll eventually see something similar here.

Flyer who went viral after refusing to give seat to crying child sues airline, passenger who filmed her

“Since that incident, my life has taken a turn I could never have imagined,” Castro explained.

nypost.com

 

[welkin]

So the woman sued the airline in Brazil, holding it accountable for the actions of this other passenger.

I have no idea about Brazilian law either, but in the US, a commercial airplane is considered a public place with no expectation of privacy, the same as all public transportation.

 

[adjusterjack]

It's a publicity grab.

I wonder if Brazil has laws against frivolous lawsuits and/or abuse of process.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

It's a publicity grab.

Couldn't be. The victim said she's not suing for herself. The settlement that she hopes to extract will represent a stern warning to the airline industry for the benefit of privacy for other passengers and their crying children.

I was wondering the same myself as to frivolous lawsuits and court cost allocation.