header-logo header-logo

15 October 2021 / Asela Wijeyaratne , Michael Hagan
Issue: 7952 / Categories: Features , Travel litigation , Aviation
printer mail-detail

Psychological injury in travel litigation: a fresh approach?

60701
Michael Hagan & Asela Wijeyaratne examine a case study on recovery under the Montreal Convention for psychological injury following aviation accidents
  • The recent case of Clark v Jet2.com Ltd tested the English court’s reaction to the textual interpretation in Doe.

In an NLJ update on aviation case law in June 2019, case law from a number of jurisdictions on the vexed question of liability for psychiatric injury under the Montreal Convention was considered (‘Flying in the face of convention’, 169 NLJ 7844). This edition revisits the seminal decision of the US Sixth Circuit Court of Appeal in the matter of Doe v Etihad Airways, PJSC, No.16-1042 (6th Cir, 2017) and considers the authors’ own recently compromised case of Clark v Jet2.com Ltd (claim no G96YX506, County Court at Liverpool) which to our knowledge is the first attempt in the English courts to litigate the permissive ‘plain text’ interpretation of the Montreal Convention adopted in Doe.

The Warsaw Convention, which opened for signature in 1929, had the ‘primary purpose of… limiting

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Gateley Legal—Jack Kelly

Gateley Legal—Jack Kelly

Gateley Legal expands Midlands residential development team

Gibson Dunn—Richard Surtees

Gibson Dunn—Richard Surtees

Gibson Dunn adds employee benefits and executive compensation practice in London with partner Richard Surtees

Laytons ETL—Alec Cameron

Laytons ETL—Alec Cameron

Laytons ETL appoints new partner and head of intellectual property disputes

NEWS
A series of recent decisions has clarified important principles across property law, from perpetuities to lease renewals and public rights over land
Employers cannot rely on wellbeing services alone to defend workplace stress claims after a High Court decision awarding almost £1m to an overworked employee
Andy Burnham's brand of 'Manchesterism' could offer fresh thinking on legal aid and access to justice if it reaches Westminster, according to Roger Smith, NLJ columnist and former director of JUSTICE
The constitutional fallout from a change of prime minister, rather than the politics, is under scrutiny as questions arise over the limits of executive authority in a leadership transition
The legal profession is undergoing a fundamental shift from selling services to creating technology-enabled products, according to Professor Luke Mason, Head of School of Law at Regent's University London
back-to-top-scroll