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Man sues airline for not looking at his scrotum
Toronto Sun ^ | March 9, 2010 | JEAN-PHILIPPE ARCAND

Posted on 03/09/2010 2:42:15 PM PST by NCjim

MONTREAL - A Westmount resident's lawsuit against Air Transat, for failure to provide him with appropriated medical attention during a flight, was dismissed in small claims court this past Tuesday.

His illness? Sudden and mysterious bleeding in the area between his legs.

The curious incident occurred February 15, 2008 during a flight from Montreal to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Marcel Cote was comfortably seated in business class an hour after takeoff when, for some unknown reason, he felt enough discomfort to make an emergency visit to the washroom, where he discovered spots of blood on his body.

In a panic, Cote asked for the help of a flight attendant, who quickly came to his side. When the passenger noticed that the agent was female, he asked to be assisted by a male attendant because the bleeding seemed to be coming from his genital area.

When the male attendant came to him, Cote then asked to be closely examined so that the exact nature of the problem can be determined. The employee declined, giving him absorbent paper instead.

Indignant and distressed, Cote quickly expressed his wish to see a doctor.

Before supplying him with sanitary towels, the members of the flight crew told him they would contact a physician if the illness was grave enough. On arriving in Puerto Vallarta three hours later, Mr. Cote met with a travel agent he knew and she took him to the hospital in a taxi. He was examined by a doctor who determined Cote had a ruptured vein near his scrotum. Three stitches were needed to close the wound.

What started off as a dream trip to a Southern paradise with his wife, in the end turned into a nightmare Cote said, claiming the incident ruined his vacation and has made him anxious about flying.

Cote sued Air Transat and the employees on the flight that day, accusing them of failing to provide appropriate medical assistance, seeking damages of $8,000 for the anguish he suffered as a result of their neglect.

But judge Michele Pauze rejected Cote's case.

In her decision, she said she agreed with arguments offered by Air Transat representative Chantal Chlala, who explained to the court that flight attendants do not have the right to examine passengers, and even less to make a diagnosis.

"It was not incumbent upon a flight attendant to conduct the medical examination of a passenger, a measure reserved for the medical profession,"

wrote judge Pauzé.

Although she conceded that Cote could very well have experienced troubling moments in the episode, the judge maintained that "nothing in the facts (put before us) proves that that the situation was dangerous or worrisome to the point of requiring the immediate attention of a doctor."

Not only did Pauze rule against Cote, she also ordered him to pay for the court costs incurred by Air Transat, amounting to $189.


TOPICS: Travel; Weird Stuff
KEYWORDS: airline; canada; napl
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Finally, a judge with some sense.
1 posted on 03/09/2010 2:42:15 PM PST by NCjim
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To: NCjim

Small claims court?


2 posted on 03/09/2010 2:43:42 PM PST by Dr. Ursus
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To: NCjim

“...was dismissed in Small Claims Court.”

Presumably for lack of evidence...


3 posted on 03/09/2010 2:44:14 PM PST by Beaten Valve
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To: NCjim

Aw, they could have provided him with some reading glasses.


4 posted on 03/09/2010 2:45:21 PM PST by HiTech RedNeck (I am in America but not of America (per bible: am in the world but not of it))
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To: NCjim

Clearly the doctor in PVR got this wrong. This dude was on his period.

had the flight attendant touched this guy, the airline would have been REALLY open to a real lawsuit for providing medical care by non medical personnel.

I hope the airline got its expenses as well as the win.


5 posted on 03/09/2010 2:45:30 PM PST by freedumb2003 ( Tagline lost -- anyone seen it?)
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To: Eaker

Relevant to your interests ping.


6 posted on 03/09/2010 2:45:40 PM PST by humblegunner
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To: NCjim

So we have reached a point where men think they have the right to have a women look at his privates.

What if she had started laughing. would he have sued for emotional distress.


7 posted on 03/09/2010 2:45:45 PM PST by Marty62 (former Marty60)
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To: freedumb2003; NCjim

>>I hope the airline got its expenses as well as the win.<<

OOpps — just read the last line of the OP and see it did.


8 posted on 03/09/2010 2:46:25 PM PST by freedumb2003 ( Tagline lost -- anyone seen it?)
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To: NCjim

It’s called a blart (bloody fart)
Unfortunately, they’re not too stinky, just messy.


9 posted on 03/09/2010 2:47:07 PM PST by hkp123
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To: Marty62

Airline personnel can’t even give you an aspirin.


10 posted on 03/09/2010 2:48:38 PM PST by Dr. Ursus
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To: Slings and Arrows

“Please look at my scrotum” ping.


11 posted on 03/09/2010 2:49:59 PM PST by Responsibility2nd
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To: Marty62
So we have reached a point where men think they have the right to have a women look at his privates.

Read it again, the article does NOT say that.

12 posted on 03/09/2010 2:50:32 PM PST by Izzy Dunne (Hello, I'm a TAGLINE virus. Please help me spread by copying me into YOUR tag line.)
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To: Izzy Dunne

I’m joking.


13 posted on 03/09/2010 2:51:45 PM PST by Marty62 (former Marty60)
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To: NCjim

What a dick


14 posted on 03/09/2010 2:52:19 PM PST by albie
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To: NCjim

And you wonder why tickets are so high?


15 posted on 03/09/2010 2:52:23 PM PST by reaganwasright1980
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To: hkp123

“It’s called a blart (bloody fart)”

...I saw “Paul Blart, Mall Cop”!


16 posted on 03/09/2010 2:53:11 PM PST by albie
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To: NCjim

It is not the aircrew’s job to look at your sack. No way. No how. It’s just not.


17 posted on 03/09/2010 2:56:16 PM PST by RichInOC (No! BAD Rich! (What'd I say?))
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To: Dr. Ursus

That took some balls.


18 posted on 03/09/2010 2:57:09 PM PST by KillTime (Democracies that can't distinguish between good and evil or deny any difference shall surely perish.)
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To: NCjim

Ballsy Lawsuit.


19 posted on 03/09/2010 2:59:28 PM PST by wbill
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To: RichInOC

It is not the aircrew’s job to look at your sack. No way. No how. It’s just not.

______________________________________

True. I would have thought that job belongs to the TSA agents.

After all, they are already looking down there....


20 posted on 03/09/2010 3:00:53 PM PST by Responsibility2nd
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To: NCjim

..."the diagnosis was made when you got out of the cab, and two red caps said"look at that a$$hole"

21 posted on 03/09/2010 3:02:08 PM PST by Doogle (USAF.68-73..8th TFW Ubon Thailand..never store a threat you should have eliminated)
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To: wbill; KillTime

>>Ballsy Lawsuit.<<

Bloody nuisance if you ask me. This guy should be sacked after the hairy mess he left.


22 posted on 03/09/2010 3:02:12 PM PST by freedumb2003 ( Tagline lost -- anyone seen it?)
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To: NCjim

Since the flight attendant was not a medical professional, then he had no obligation to render medical aid.

An interesting factoid here: At the dawn of air travel in the 1930’s, Pan Am used to hire only registered nurses as flight attendants.


23 posted on 03/09/2010 3:02:17 PM PST by Blood of Tyrants (Truth - Reality through the eyes of God.)
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To: hkp123

Better a blart than a shart....we’ve all gambled on a fart and lost at least once or twice.


24 posted on 03/09/2010 3:03:12 PM PST by ErnBatavia (It's not the Obama Administration....it's the "Obama Regime".)
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To: NCjim

Doesn’t TSA have scanners for that?


25 posted on 03/09/2010 3:03:19 PM PST by LouD ("against all enemies, foreign and domestic...")
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To: NCjim
Flight attendants aren't trained to make a medical diagnosis. They don't have consent forms that are necessary and routine in medical offices. And it would be dangerous for flight personnel to come in contact with blood without protection from sterile gloves and clothing.

This case was, so to speak, nuts.

26 posted on 03/09/2010 3:04:06 PM PST by colorado tanker
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To: NCjim

Applause for Michele Pauze...!!


27 posted on 03/09/2010 3:05:13 PM PST by Osage Orange (A fear of weapons is a sign of retarded sexual and emotional maturity. - Sigmund Freud)
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To: RichInOC

And I realize the thought of bleeding from your scrotum is disturbing, believe me, I do, but unless you’re hemophiliac, it’s probably not life-threatening. Nut it up, pardon the expression, and get it fixed when you land.


28 posted on 03/09/2010 3:08:27 PM PST by RichInOC (No! BAD Rich! (What'd I say?))
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To: NCjim
“Excuse me sir, I am leaking bodily fluids, a potential biohazard; I would like you to subject yourself and your company to additional legal liability by coming into contact with my biohazardous bodily fluids and rendering a medical diagnosis and/or treatment. Wait? Where are you going? Why are you laughing? Won't someone PLEASE look at my scrote?”
29 posted on 03/09/2010 3:08:45 PM PST by allmendream (Income is EARNED not distributed. So how could it be re-distributed?)
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To: NCjim; Lazamataz

this story needs the input of lazamataz! (probably not actually, but...)


30 posted on 03/09/2010 3:09:21 PM PST by robomatik (III%)
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To: NCjim

Now that is strange, most of the male attendants I’ve seen look like the kind that would jump at the chance to inspect some guy’s “package”.................


31 posted on 03/09/2010 3:11:42 PM PST by doorgunner69
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To: Beaten Valve

The evidence didn’t stand up. But, that’s a hard one to call.


32 posted on 03/09/2010 3:21:10 PM PST by pfflier
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To: NCjim; Slings and Arrows
Holy scrotum, Batman!

Image and video hosting by TinyPic

33 posted on 03/09/2010 3:45:42 PM PST by EveningStar (Karl Marx is not one of our Founding Fathers.)
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To: martin_fierro
When the passenger noticed that the agent was female, he asked to be assisted by a male attendant because the bleeding seemed to be coming from his genital area.

34 posted on 03/09/2010 4:36:07 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Freedom is Priceless.)
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To: NCjim

Why couldnt his wife take a look? I would rather that than have the male flight steward.

People are stupid.


35 posted on 03/09/2010 4:43:58 PM PST by Delta 21 (If you cant tell if I'm being sarcastic...maybe I'm not.)
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To: Slings and Arrows

Ping for the headline!


36 posted on 03/09/2010 4:47:57 PM PST by Grizzled Bear (Does not play well with others.)
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To: ErnBatavia
Poetically inspirational as well....

Here I sit,
broken-hearted.
I came to
...well you know the rest.
37 posted on 03/09/2010 5:01:23 PM PST by Tainan (Cogito, ergo conservatus)
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To: Delta 21
Why couldnt his wife take a look?

yah. An obvious solution. In pretty much any case, the only option was to gauze it and have a seat.

38 posted on 03/09/2010 5:14:35 PM PST by Ramius (Personally, I give us... one chance in three. More tea?)
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To: Allegra; CSM; dayglored; Dutchgirl; IYAS9YAS; Jersey Republican Biker Chick; Old Sarge; ...
♀☹☠☣☢★☆
MANGLED
GENITALS
PING

☆★☢☣☠☹♂

39 posted on 03/09/2010 5:33:31 PM PST by martin_fierro (< |:)~)
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To: NCjim

Wouldn’t check out his b*lls? I hate when that happens.


40 posted on 03/09/2010 5:44:17 PM PST by Jack Hammer
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To: EveningStar; Grizzled Bear; MeekOneGOP; Conspiracy Guy; DocRock; King Prout; Darksheare; OSHA; ...
Man, do I have a case!


41 posted on 03/09/2010 6:25:54 PM PST by Slings and Arrows ("Jim Robinson is the onle person that sweets proper nut sweet. leave the man alone."--Sarah-bot)
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To: NCjim
What started off as a dream trip to a Southern paradise with his wife, in the end turned into a nightmare Cote said, claiming the incident ruined his vacation and has made him anxious about flying.

Now he's *anxious* about flying? All because some one in a billion chance of something happening happened to him?

What a wuss.

42 posted on 03/09/2010 6:40:44 PM PST by metmom (Welfare was never meant to be a career choice.)
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To: Slings and Arrows

Sue, man, sue! But spare us the details, K?


43 posted on 03/09/2010 6:50:00 PM PST by TheOldLady ("The welfare of humanity is always the alibi of tyrants." -- Albert Camus)
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To: Marty62
So we have reached a point where men think they have the right to have a women look at his privates.

He asked for the male attendant.

44 posted on 03/09/2010 6:56:22 PM PST by gitmo
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To: NCjim
LOOK AT MY SCROTUM!!!

I've waited YEARS to post that sentence on FR.

45 posted on 03/09/2010 6:59:51 PM PST by SIDENET ("If that's your best, your best won't do." -Dee Snider)
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To: NCjim
"Scrotum?"

"Hell, it damn near killed him!"

/ rimshot

46 posted on 03/09/2010 7:05:36 PM PST by SIDENET ("If that's your best, your best won't do." -Dee Snider)
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To: gitmo

How special


47 posted on 03/09/2010 7:06:43 PM PST by Marty62 (former Marty60)
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To: Delta 21

Good point. I had assumed he was traveling alone.


48 posted on 03/09/2010 7:12:38 PM PST by gitmo
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To: Slings and Arrows
Is this a followup report to this?

Larry King Had His ‘Privates’ Fondled at the Airport (nymag.com ^ | March 5, 2010)

49 posted on 03/09/2010 7:21:37 PM PST by a fool in paradise
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To: a fool in paradise

I hope not. I’m running low on Brain Bleach.


50 posted on 03/09/2010 7:34:04 PM PST by Slings and Arrows ("Jim Robinson is the onle person that sweets proper nut sweet. leave the man alone."--Sarah-bot)
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