Among other things, Avis countered that the customer could have asked for discounts through other af

She paid about $300 for a week-long american express travel card rental, but did not receive the group discount, in the neighborhood of 20 percent, that members american express travel card of two gay organizations could get from Avis, because american express travel card Avis did not perceive her to be a lesbian or gay customer or because Avis did not perceive her to be associated with favored lesbian or gay customer groups. She sued Avis in U.S. District Court in San Diego, and a federal judge recently denied Avis effort to get the case dismissed in its early stages. The ruling also opens the door to class-action lawsuits, i.e., similar claims by other Avis customers.
In her suit, Evenchick american express travel card claimed that Avis violated California s Unruh Civil Rights Act and the state s Business and Professions Code which prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and unfair business practices, respectively.
american express travel card Among other things, Avis countered that the customer could have asked for discounts through other affiliations such as the Hilton Honors member discount or through Best Buy rewards. Avis also asserted that she could have joined the two gay groups even if she was straight because those organizations are open to everyone.
There is no evidence that Avis offered Plaintiff any discount american express travel card equal to the rental discount given members of the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association or the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce And although Avis repeats american express travel card it often as fact, there is no evidence that membership in either International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association or the National Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce was open to Plaintiff when she rented her car.
Presumably american express travel card the Avis customer filed the case in federal rather than state court because of diversity jurisdiction. In other words, the plaintiff is from Arizona, the incident took place in California, and Avis maintains it corporate offices in New Jersey.
This interim ruling american express travel card by the judge doesn t decide the lawsuit on the merits; it only means that the case continues american express travel card to move through the system. If the case gets to trial (and not settled or dropped along the way), it will be up to the customer to provide proof in support of her allegations.
Car rental companies have all kinds of discounts based on holding certain credit cards, membership in the AAA or many other organizations, and so forth, although none of these other promotions american express travel card or affiliations american express travel card directly involve american express travel card sexual orientation. Do you think this is a frivolous lawsuit or does the customer have a legitimate claim of discrimination, which some would refer to as reverse discrimination?