Originally Posted by
dera
The main point of the FlexJet verdict was that there was no valuable consideration, so there was no contract. Not what was promised.
If they had given the type rating, the contract would've been much stronger. Now it was just an SIC gig, and the court agreed that was not worth anything outside FlexJet.
That's a common 135 training contract. And that one wasn't enforceable because it gave no value to the employee outside FlexJet.
No, what the defendant asserted and what the jury ruled was that there was no contract because of fraud, that Flexjet had deceived the defendant into believing he would get not just the training but the type rating.
Pilot wins lawsuit against Bombardier Flexjet: Firm used deceptive practices, jury finds
A couple excerpts:
Pilot wins lawsuit against Bombardier Flexjet: Firm used deceptive practices, jury finds
(Dallas Morning News, The (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Feb. 9--A Dallas jury has found Bombardier Flexjet's contract with a former pilot unenforceable, saying the Richardson-based private jet company used deceptive practices in promising pilots promotions and training.
The jury returned its verdict Monday, finding that the contract was invalid and that Flexjet had used deceptive trade practices, said Rob Wiley, attorney for Mr. Miller.
However, the jury awarded Mr. Miller no damages in his countersuit against Flexjet, and he probably will have to bear his own legal costs.
Mr. Miller estimated his legal expenses were about $70,000, but he believes he's among the very first pilots to successfully challenge Flexjet's pilot contract.
"It was a real education for me," he said
So yeah, the jury ruled that the contract was invalid because of fraud, NOT that such contracts were invariably unenforceable. In fact, the plaintiff and his lawyer did not even make that claim.
And talk about a Pyrrhic victory - $70K in legal fees to avoid giving Flexjet $5280? That’s a loss in my book.
But basically we are saying the same thing, you and I. Many of these contracts truly are unconscionable although enforceability varies from state to state.
But nobody ought to be left with the idea that it’s no big deal to sign without thinking or to renege on them, because it's NOT.