On The Liability Of The Carrier To Passengers In International Air Crash

Warsaw Convention was concluded in 1929, which marked the beginning of unified regulation of world civil aviation industry. 80 years after that, the Warsaw System has been developed on the basis of Warsaw Convention. As the newest development of Warsaw System, Montreal Protocol is coming into effect in various countries in a new era. The Warsaw System means to regulate the legal responsibility of international civil aviation carriers. Air crashes are extremely severe aviation accidents in international civil aviation, so it is of great importance to regulate the liability of damage of carriers for passengers. While the liability of damage of carriers for passengers in international air crashes has been studied in western countries, especially America which is regarded as the top one aviation power, it has rarely been studied by academics in China. This thesis mainly discusses two key legal problems of the liability of damage of carriers, which includes criterion of liability ,liability limits and extent of compensation ,and"the jurisdiction of the residential places of passenger"which is a new problem put forward in 1999 Montreal Protocol by using the historical analysis,comparative study and empirical analysis methods.The thesis can be divided into five parts.The first part as a summary compares three concepts, international aviation accident, international aviation event and international air crash, and then defines the subject which will be examined.The second part probes into the criterion of liability and liability limits, which are essential legal problems debated since the establishment of Warsaw System. As the principle of criterion of liability evolves from presumption of fault into strict liability, the liability limits is being raised up. Though the criterion of liability and liability limits seem to be two problems, they actually are tightly bound together. This indivisible relation can be seen from the content of 1999 Montreal Protocol, which stipulates the"two-tier liability". The"two-tier liability"is the product of compromise between great power and minor power in aviation industry, and also the new development of Warsaw System.The third part mainly discuss the extent of compensation of carriers, which is another legal problem of the liability of damage of carriers for passenger .This problem can be further divided into two controversial issues, they are how to determine the compensation for mental loss and whether the punitive damages is reasonable. The opinions on compensation for mental loss are so divided that an agreed standard was hard to conclude for past 80 years. However, a unified point has been achieved after the a long-run discussion, that is, while the physical damage caused by aviation accidents and the mental loss which is further caused by the former damage is reimbursable, the pure mental loss is not reimbursable. Nowadays this kind of notion is being applied in judicial practices of many countries. As to punitive damages, only a few courts of justice in some countries uphold it and most countries refused it because of its inconsistency with the principle of compensation in private law.The fourth part discusses the jurisdiction of the residential places of passenger. Although the subject is not the essential legal problem of the liability of damage for passengers in international air crash, it will be the substitute for the whole documents of Warsaw System as Montreal Protocol has taken effect in many countries. Moreover, the jurisdiction of the residential places of passenger ,can provide more chances for the victims to choose forum, which is beneficial to the protection of victims.The fifth part draws a conclusion at the end of the thesis.