Judge Dismisses Suit Challenging Airline's 'Cashless Cabin'

A flight from Hawaii to Newark, N.J., is a long flight under any circumstances.  But for Michael W. Rosen it was made even longer by the absence of entertainment and alcohol -- deficiencies he blamed on Continental Airlines' no-cash policy.

Rosen, of Ridgewood, N.J., filed suit against Continental claiming that its refusal to accept cash for drinks and headsets amounted to unlawful discrimination.

Not so, said state Superior Court judge Denise Cobham, who  dismissed Rosen's lawsuit Friday.

Judge Cobham said Rosen did not provide enough evidence to make a case under state statutes that the airline's policy to take only credit or debit cards or special coupons for in-flight entertainment and alcoholic beverages was discriminatory and in violation of consumer fraud and false advertising laws.

"The plaintiff has not shown me the policy is unreasonable or that he was not informed of it," she said. She also denied Rosen's request to make the complaint a class action by certifying that numerous people who did not have debit or credit cards may have been harmed by the policy.

Rosen, who said he had left his credit cards in his checked baggage,  said afterward that he disagreed with the judge's decisions to dismiss the bulk of the complaint and that he may appeal, NorthJersey.com reported.  

Doug Amster, Continental's lawyer, had argued that there is no law against a company refusing to take cash.