United's contract of carriage appears not to be super clear on when such a situation is in effect, or what they consider to be "denied boarding". Which means t

United's contract of carriage appears not to be super clear on when such a situation is in effect, or what they consider to be "denied boarding". Which means this one's going to need a court to sort it out, though I believe the general principle, when the terms are ambiguous or have multiple interpretations, is to prefer the interpretation least favorable to the side that wrote the contract.