MOSCOW, February 10 (RAPSI, Ingrid Burke) - A joint witness list filed Friday sheds insight into the upcoming US legal battle between Russian airline Aeroflot and California travel agency Riviera Travel & Tours, Inc. in a dispute stemming from allegations of improper ticket sales by the agency. The trial is scheduled to commence on March 4 at a US federal court in California.

Aeroflot plans to call ten witnesses, including Aeroflot US General Director Andrey Novokshonov and Aeroflot US Sales Manager Dragan Drobnjak, as well as others with direct knowledge of and experience with Aeroflot’s stateside operations, or with industry expertise. Notably, Aeroflot also plans to call Alexey Aleksandrov – Aeroflot’s former Los Angeles General Manager against whom Riviera has filed a counter-claim, and Caren Tumanian – Riviera’s owner and president.

Riviera plans to call 101 witnesses – including both Tumanian and Riviera’s General Manager Vinay Gandhi. The remainder of Riviera’s witness list features a broad range of individuals with varying connections to the case, including Riviera customers, a former police officer, and a detective.

In October 2011, Aeroflot-Russian Airlines filed a lawsuit against Riviera Travel & Tours, Inc. asserting five claims: fraud, tortious interference with contracts, breach of contract, breach of agency, and injunctive relief/disgorgement of profits under California’s business and professional code.

At the time, the airline asserted: “Aeroflot brings this action to recover damages from Riviera, its former agent, and Tumanian, Riviera’s president, for engaging in a calculated scheme of wrongful conduct against Aeroflot, including issuing hundreds of tickets for low, unauthorized fares, thereby causing Aeroflot to sustain revenue losses exceeding $315,000.” Riviera subsequently filed a series of counterclaims against Aeroflot and Aleksandrov.

Both companies filed memos of contentions of fact and law on Friday, revealing the remaining issues they intend to raise at trial.

According to Aeroflot’s memo, its only remaining cause of action against Riviera is for injunctive relief for Riviera’s violation of the California Business and Profession Code.

The airline seeks to prove that Riviera engaged in unlawful, unfair, or fraudulent business with reference to business records, including 412 tickets allegedly wrongfully issued by the travel agency.

Riviera asserts six counterclaims against Aeroflot. Claims of trade libel, defamation, and tortious interference with a prospective economic relationship arise from “allegations that Aeroflot employees directed defamatory statements to Riviera’s customers, describing Riviera as ‘thieves,’ ‘crooks,’ and ‘shysters,’ among other things.” 
Riviera further claims a breach of California’s Business and Profession Code, arising from allegations of Aeroflots’s wrongful business conduct, including: “ongoing malicious defamation of Riviera, harassment of Riviera’s customers, bribery, in-flight upgrades, and seat blocking.”

Owing to this alleged pattern of behavior, the travel agency asserts that Aeroflot now has funds in its possession which should be transferred to Riviera, thus advancing

the “cause of action” of unjust enrichment, equitable tracing, and imposition of constructive trust. Aeroflot argues in its own memo that this is actually a list of remedies, not a substantive cause of action.

Finally, Riviera advances a claim of declaratory relief – arguing that documents forcefully obtained from it fail to establish legal liability. As Aeroflot explained in its own memo, the travel agency seeks a judicial determination that letters written by Tumanian are invalid, and fail to establish liability.

Riviera asserts a claim of conversion against former General Manager of Aeroflot’s Los Angeles operations, Alexey Aleksandrov, based on allegations that he wrongfully took from Riviera a $30,000 check, and then refused to return it when asked to do so. Aeroflot explained Riviera’s allegations on this point in the following terms: “Riviera has a sole remaining cause of action against [Aleksandrov] for Conversion, based upon that allegation that Mr Aleksandrov tricked Rivera into giving Aeroflot a $30,000 check, made payable to Aeroflot from Riviera for money allegedly owed to Aeroflot, under the pretext that Aeroflot would reinstate Riviera's ability to issue Aeroflot tickets upon receipt of this amount.”

Aeroflot noted in its witness list that Aleksandrov would testify at trial in order to rebut Riviera’s allegation that he obtained the check by deceptive means.