Roberto Hung Cavalieri v. Avior Airlines C.A., 25 F.4th 843

Plaintiffs bought Avior tickets from Miami to Venezuela and allege tickets (at least Hung’s receipt) represented the price "including taxes and fees." At airport check-in Avior required an additional $80 "Exit Fee."
Plaintiffs filed a putative nationwide breach-of-contract class action claiming the Exit Fee was not disclosed in the Contract of Carriage and thus breached the agreed ticket price.
The district court dismissed with prejudice, holding the Airline Deregulation Act (ADA) preempted the claim as relating to airline pricing and that Wolens did not save the claim.
On appeal the Eleventh Circuit (per curiam) reversed: it found the complaint plausibly alleges a voluntary contractual undertaking (ticket price inclusive of fees) and that Wolens permits state-law breach-of-contract adjudication of such private commitments.
The court also permitted amendment to allege CAFA minimal diversity via unnamed class members and held the pleadings sufficiently alleged jurisdictional thresholds at this stage.
The panel declined to resolve contested contract-interpretation issues (e.g., incorporation of website disclosures) and remanded for further proceedings.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
ADA preemption / Wolens exception	Claim enforces the parties' private bargain (ticket price inclusive); Wolens protects breach-of-contract suits enforcing voluntary commitments	ADA preempts because the claim relates to price and no voluntary undertaking to exclude the fee was pled	Reversed: Wolens applies; ADA does not preempt this private breach-of-contract claim
Federal jurisdiction (CAFA minimal diversity)	At least one unnamed class member is a U.S. citizen, class exceeds 100 members and $5M; thus minimal diversity plausible	Named plaintiffs are foreign; no diversity if relying on named plaintiffs	Allowed amendment to plead an unnamed U.S. class member; CAFA minimal diversity plausibly alleged at pleading stage
Sufficiency of breach pleading	Complaint alleges contract = Contract of Carriage + issued ticket; alleges fee was undisclosed and breach occurred	Complaint fails to identify specific contractual term; Avior points to website disclosures and incorporation by reference	Complaint plausibly states a breach claim; dismissal for failure to state a claim not warranted at this stage
Incorporation by reference / website disclosures	Web pages described as "of interest" were not clearly incorporated; ticket representations control	Contract of Carriage incorporates web pages that disclose additional charges	Court declined to resolve incorporation/interpretation issues on appeal; left for district court on remand

American Airlines, Inc. v. Wolens, 513 U.S. 219 (state-law breach claims enforcing voluntary carrier commitments are not preempted by the ADA)
Morales v. Trans World Airlines, Inc., 504 U.S. 374 (ADA preemption broadly bars state regulation related to airline price, route, or service)
Bailey v. Rocky Mountain Holdings, LLC, 889 F.3d 1259 (11th Cir. 2018) (discusses Wolens exception and ADA preemption analysis)
Sanchez v. Aerovias De Mexico, S.A. De C.V., 590 F.3d 1027 (9th Cir. 2010) (distinguished: no contractual promise found regarding the challenged charge)
Nw., Inc. v. Ginsberg, 572 U.S. 273 (if carrier voluntarily agrees to a fee schedule, enforcement of that agreement is not preempted)
Lowery v. Alabama Power Co., 483 F.3d 1184 (11th Cir. 2007) (CAFA minimal diversity principles)