OK, I understand you are taking a Devil's advocate position here.
But I can argue against "justice" and against the Plaintiff's own best interests.
First, the DOT/FAA are protected by sovereign immunity. The US taxpayers are not going to pay $3,000,000,000.00 unless you can prove a deliberate government conspiracy to harm you and prove your damages. If you could sue the government, how many would line up to sue the armed service branches for allowing their kids to get killed? There are reasons for judicial protections afforded our nation.
Second, ALPA and the APA do not even have your attorney's fees on a three billion dollar award. You will discover through your litigation that ALPA does not have the cash to pay a handful of your plaintiffs and what money does exist is offshore, tied up un AFL-CIO affiliated insurance equities. (if there was an upside to prior DFR litigation, it is that the unions got good at making themselves judgement proof)
This is an interesting legal question and probably will get your Counsel face time in front of the Supreme Court, which is a lawyer's way of becoming living legend. Your lawyer probably also has you and your buddies paying his current fees and costs, plus contingency in the event that a dollar ever gets paid.
So, are you going to maintain a First Class medical while your case is on appeal? At a minimum this will take four years to work it's way through the Courts.
The only upside I see, is for your Counsel.
My humble advice is to save the money spent on attorneys and get a fun 135 job that allows you to enjoy retirement without the last chapter of your life being a war you can't win.
Fins,
You have a good understand of the law; maybe you can answer the question that I posed to this guy earlier on this thread.
The only way that I see that these guys can have a 'standing' to sue or get to court, is to 'challenge' the new law itself as being 'discriminatory.' And, in going so, if they are successful, and a Judge finds as such, a Federal Court Judge would have no choice but to 'strike down' the law. And, as you mentioned, would go to appeal and through the court system, but the end result, if successful would be the new law being thrown out, and would revert back to the previous/old law, (age 60).
Isn't that a likely possibility??
Unless they are merely just trying to go after alpa, apa, in a DFR suit; which DFR suits are very difficult to prove. And if they were over '60' at the time, were not an active/current member of alpa and would make a DFR suit even more difficult??
For what its worth.
PD
P.S. Personally, I do hope they are successful, as I said, the end result may in fact mean the new law will be 'overturned' and we are back to 'age 60'!!