Carriage by air—Carriage of passengers—Liability of carrier

Court of Appeal, Civil Division, Moore-Bick, Kitchin and Fulford LJJ, 19 Jun 2014

The English courts are bound to follow and apply the decisions of the European Court of Justice in relation to the nature of the claim for compensation under Art 7 of Parliament and Council Regulation (EC) 261/2004 and its compatibility with the Montreal Convention.

Akhil Shah QC (instructed by Bott & Co) for the claimant. Robert Lawson QC (instructed by Herbert Smith Freehills LLP) for the defendant.

In December 2006, the claimant was due to fly with the defendant airline from Gatwick airport to the Dominican Republic. His flight was delayed due to crew shortages caused by sickness and arrived at its destination over six hours late. In December 2012, shortly before the expiration of the limitation period under s 9 of the Limitation Act 1980, the claimant issued proceedings seeking to recover compensation from the