July 20 (Reuters) – A federal appeals court on Monday decertified a shareholder class action accusing Boeing of prioritizing profit over safety and overstating its commitment to safe aircraft, prior to the January 2024 mid-air cabin panel blowout on an Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9.
The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said shareholders led by Rhode Island’s state treasurer did not provide an appropriate methodology for showing how damages could be calculated on a classwide basis.
Lawyers for the shareholders did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Boeing and its lawyers did not immediately respond to similar requests.
Class actions can allow greater recoveries at lower cost than individual lawsuits.
Boeing shareholders accused the Arlington, Virginia-based company of inflating its stock price by issuing misleading statements following the crashes of two MAX planes in October 2018 and March 2019, which killed 346.
U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Virginia, ruled in March 2025 that shareholders who owned Boeing stock between January 7, 2021 and January 8, 2024 could sue as a group for damages. The appeals court returned the case to her.
(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New YorkEditing by Nick Zieminski)
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