Final Report for the Loss of My Arrow

mcmanigle said:
Sure, but why do a cursory search when you can just throw everything on there and hope for the best? Also, if you think your other owners are judgement-proof anyway, or their total assets are going to come in under your hoped-for judgement, why not throw in the extra half million that the owner's insurance policy might include? And/or their vacation house that's the reason they had this plane on leaseback? And/or savings for a kid's college that isn't in a 529 (or is in a state where that isn't protected)? In most cases it takes longer to figure all of that out up front than it does to just throw them all on the suit, and then figure out after judgement who's worth trying to collect from.
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Makes a strong case for owning your leaseback plane under a LLC.
 
mcmanigle said:
when you can just throw everything on there and hope for the best?
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FWIW: while I'm sure that may happen in some cases, there usually is some sort of effort on the plaintiff side to fine tune who they list on their initial filing. After all they want to win and maximize their settlement. The more defendants the more costs involved in developing the case. Not to mention, sometimes the GARA Act prevents listing certain parties and in other situations state laws might prevent the wealth of certain defendants from being accessed like their homes or retirement accounts. In my limited experience, unless the plaintiff can show a lack of "standard of care" by a defendant that directly relates to their case, it can allow some defendants the ability to be dropped from the case.
 
SC777 said:
Makes a strong case for owning your leaseback plane under a LLC.
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A single member LLC is an easy veil to pierce. Nothing prohibits you from being sued personally for your own acts.
 
SC777 said:
Makes a strong case for owning your leaseback plane under a LLC.
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flyingron said:
A single member LLC is an easy veil to pierce. Nothing prohibits you from being sued personally for your own acts.
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Even a multi member is easy these days. Nothing stops all the members from being named anyway, and it still costs each money to try to get their liability in joint liability States to 0.

America, where you get as much justice as you can afford. And there’s a reason the tax attorney is the only guy besides the museum who owns two warbirds at my home airport...
 
Warlock said:
I find myself as the owner of the aircraft as a defendant in three different lawsuits.
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Warlock, ask your attorneys if they think 49 USCA § 44112 might be of assistance in defending the lawsuit:

(b) Liability.--A lessor, owner, or secured party is liable for personal injury, death, or property loss or damage only when a civil aircraft, aircraft engine, or propeller is in the actual possession or operational control of the lessor, owner, or secured party, and the personal injury, death, or property loss or damage occurs because of--
(1) the aircraft, engine, or propeller; or
(2) the flight of, or an object falling from, the aircraft, engine, or propeller.
​
Here is a case where it was cited by a federal district court in support of the grant of summary judgment: In re Lawrence W. Inlow Acc. Litigation, 2001 WL 331625 (S.D. Ind. 2001). It's certainly not a slam dunk, but maybe it will help.
 
Just an update the last of four lawsuits was resolved yesterday with a summary Judgement with Prejudice in my favor for both the LLC and myself as an individual. I had good lawyers and if you ever find yourself like I did I can give a referral.

For five years I have carried the possibility of financial insolvency due to the actions of a FAA employee in an aircraft I owned and leased back. I will never forget the six year old child he killed in the process…and will carry that with me for life…I have not flown in almost a year but maybe just maybe it might happen again…this morning a MH-47 flew over the house low level and I got excited. Sort of regret selling my airplane six months ago.
 
Warlock said:
Just an update the last of four lawsuits was resolved yesterday with a summary Judgement with Prejudice in my favor for both the LLC and myself as an individual. I had good lawyers and if you ever find yourself like I did I can give a referral.

For five years I have carried the possibility of financial insolvency due to the actions of a FAA employee in an aircraft I owned and leased back. I will never forget the six year old child he killed in the process…and will carry that with me for life…I have not flown in almost a year but maybe just maybe it might happen again…this morning a MH-47 flew over the house low level and I got excited. Sort of regret selling my airplane six months ago.
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Based on my recollection of the events, I don't know how you could possibly seen the outcome with the little girl. But I get it.

At least the possible financial burden has been relieved.

Now that it's behind you, Charlie Mike.
 
mcmanigle said:
This varies a bit by state, and you should listen to a real lawyer's explanation over mine, but in general plaintiffs will add every defendant they can think of to the claim. (Same with crashes where they throw on the engine manufacturer, etc.) What they're hoping for is that the jury decides "damages were $10 million for loss of this little girl. That was 80% the pilot's fault for all of his obvious failings, 15% the club's fault for letting someone with an outstanding arrest warrant borrow the plane, and 5% the owner's fault for letting his plane be used by a club with such lax policies." If you're in a joint and several liability state, and the pilot has no recoverable assets and the club was a well-organized LLC without any assets, the owner is now on the hook for the full $10 million.
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The legal term for this is “Suing the phone book”. You name everyone you possibly can in an accident.
 
Jeff767 said:
The legal term for this is “Suing the phone book”. You name everyone you possibly can in an accident.
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And in other countries, you'd be paying the legal bills of those released from the suit, as it should be here. (I worked in a law office for long enough to not want to be a lawyer. Saying "losing party pays" out loud was blasphemy.)
 
As an example the FBO who never worked on the airplane and just happened to be on my home airfield spent 10K removing themselves from the process in legal fees.

The estranged wife and mother of the kidnapped child, who was killed was left in financial ruin because of lawsuits against the estate. You learn a lot about how your government works in a case like this.
 
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