ATLANTA (CBS46) -
It's a lawsuit that now includes every passenger who's ever paid to check their first bag on a Delta or Air Tran flight.
This week, a federal judge gave lawyers the green light to bring their arguments to trial.
The two airlines enacted matching baggage fee policies in December 2008, and anyone who checked at least one bag with them since then will be getting an invitation to join a class action lawsuit.
Assuming Delta doesn't appeal, a claims administrator will start counting the tens of millions of people affected and start contacting them one by one.
According to the judge's order, plaintiff’s lawyers argue the two airlines made a secret agreement to start charging for first bag fees at about the same time.
Lawyers are calling it anti-competitive tactics, giving passengers less choices if they want to fly with an airline that doesn't charge to check the first bag.
According to statistics from the U.S. Department of Transportation, Delta has consistently made the most money out of any other airline on baggage fees.
Since 2009, they've brought in over $5 billion and attorneys are asking for hundreds of millions of it to be returned to the passengers.
The actual amount that passengers would receive in the event of a settlement or winning judgment could greatly vary. Individual claimants in similar lawsuits have received everything from full compensation to just a few dollars each.
Atlanta Attorney Sandy Wallack is not involved in the case but he has been following it closely. He said many unpredictable factors will affect the outcome and it probably won't arrive at an end anytime soon. People expecting a notice in their mailbox should take a break from checking for a little while.
Delta did not wish to respond to the latest developments for this report, citing the pending litigation.
You can click here to read a document signed by the judge that summarizes what’s happening with the lawsuit so far.
Story and video: http://www.wtoc.com
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