Judge Beatty has made a few remarks that raised eyebrows, even before the trial started, and the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents Delta’s pilots, tried to get her to recuse herself from the case. She reportedly said it was “really weird” that anyone had agreed to pay such “hideously high” pilot salaries in the first place. She also said the only “good thing” about pilots is they must retire at age 60. But in response to ALPA, she said the remarks were just jokes, and declined to step down. Sources familiar with Beatty told USA Today that despite her eccentricity, she’s a “brilliant” judge. “She can recall any facts in any case she has ever read,” said Matthew Bergman, a New York lawyer who clerked for Beatty in 2000.”
