Miree v. Dekalb County

433 U.S. 25 (1977)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

A Lear jet crashed from the ingestion of birds into the turbofan engine. A number of the survivors sued Dekalb County (D) on a number of different theories. The breach of contract action was the only viable one. D had contracted with the federal government to use land adjacent to an airport in a manner compatible with airport operations. D had operated a landfill next to the airport, and that caused the swarming of birds around the airport. Miree (P) alleged that the ingestion of birds into the engine of the aircraft caused the crash and sued as a third-party beneficiary under the D-federal government contract for adjacent land use. The district court applied Georgia law and dismissed the action under the governmental immunity defense. The Fifth Circuit reversed this decision en banc; federal law was applicable because the federal government was a party to the contract at issue. The Supreme Court accepted certiorari.