By Joseph M. Hanna, of Goldberg Segalla
On September 9, 2016, the Fifth Circuit upheld a district judge’s decision to deny class certification to those fans who were displaced or denied entirely from seats at Super Bowl XLV. Additionally, it affirmed the dismissal of the breach of contract claim against the Dallas Cowboys, agreeing that the Cowboys, whose home stadium served as the location for Super Bowl XLV, were merely third-party vendors of tickets to the event.
In doing so, the Fifth Circuit rejected several proposed classes of fans, including finding that there were too few plaintiffs to form a class of fans displaced from seats, that individual issues of reliance predominated over the common issues for the fans who were forced to relocate, and that individual issues dominated for fans who allegedly had an obstructed view.
Furthermore, the appeals court held that the fans failed to make a strong case that the NFL specifically intended to defraud fans into buying tickets when it knew the temporary seating would not be prepared in time for the game. It also affirmed the dismissal of fraudulent concealment and negligent misrepresentation claims under Texas law. Finally, it rejected breach of contract claims from fans complaining of an obstructed view, saying that the tickets entitled them merely to “a spectator seat for the game,” which the panel said means the field as opposed to the video board.
This class certification appeal arose out of a 2015 trial in which seven fans were awarded damages as compensation for their expenses in traveling to the game.
