If an airline determines a passenger is big enough to fill more than one seat it has the right to charge for more than one ticket, a judge ruled Wednesday in dismissing a lawsuit filed against Southwest Airlines

Cynthia Luther’s action alleged that Southwest harassed and discriminated against her May 23 before she boarded a flight from Reno to Burbank.

Airline employees asked Luther, who weighs more than 300 pounds, if she needed a seat belt extension, then told her she needed to buy a second ticket “so as not to inconvenience other passengers seated next to her,” her lawsuit stated.

A friend bought the extra ticket, but Luther sat in one seat with the armrest down, “with another person seated next to her in a comfortable position,” according to the lawsuit. Superior Court Judge Marilyn Hoffman agreed with Southwest attorney Arthur Willner, who said the policy Luther ran into does not discriminate against large passengers. “The procedure and policy is directed in any situation where it appears for whatever reason a passenger might significantly encroach on another passenger,” Willner said