The case against Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) has successfully concluded, bringing justice to the families of those who tragically lost their lives on flight PS752 in Iran in January 2020.
On June 10, 2024, the Ontario Superior Court has ruled that UIA was negligent in allowing PS752 to depart Tehran on January 8, 2020. The airline’s decision tragically led to the death of all 176 passengers on board, including victims represented by Thomson Rogers.
The ruling underlines the airline's failure to adequately evaluate the risks posed by the volatile geopolitical climate at the time, which directly contributed to the event.
The Court’s decision today provides some answers to the families and ensures that UIA will be required to provide full compensation to the victims.
This decision will also hopefully be the impetus for airlines around the world to always ensure that the safety and security of their passengers and crews are at the forefront of their decision-making in conflict zones.
In response to the Superior Court of Ontario’s ruling against Ukrainian International Airlines, the association of the flight victims' families said ,
The Ontario Court's ruling "does not diminish in any way the IRGC’s and the Islamic regime’s responsibility in the downing of flight PS752 but further emphasizes it,
“court refutes the Islamic Republic of Iran’s report claiming human error as the cause for the downing and finds it unconvincing.”
The Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims further added that
Further to proving that UIA was negligent in not stopping the flight on January 8, the court order includes many observations against the Islamic Republic of Iran. The judge declared the Islamic Republic’s explanations claiming human error as unconvincing in the context of Iran’s military and civil radar capabilities.
Elsewhere in the report, the judge holds the Islamic Republic responsible in keeping the civilian airspace open and not issuing a NOTAM (Notice to Airman) during those hours.
The Ukraine International Airlines has failed to prove that it was "not negligent" in allowing the Flight PS752 to depart Tehran on Jan. 8, 2020, amid escalating military tensions between the US and Iran, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled on Monday.
The Verdict read as,
For the reasons I set out below, I find that UIA has failed to prove, on a balance of probabilities, that it was not negligent in allowing PS752 to depart Tehran on January 8, 2020. As such, its liability under the Montreal Convention is unlimited.
The aircraft was shot down by the IRGC shortly after departing Tehran, leading to the deaths of all 176 passengers and crew aboard. The court declared that UIA failed to meet its duty of care, citing negligence for not delaying the flight amid escalating military tensions between the US and Iran.
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The judgment means that under the Montreal Convention, the international law which governs the international carriage of passengers, UIA will not be able to limit the compensation payable to the families to $180,000 USD per passenger, but instead will be now obligated to pay full compensatory damages arising from the fatalities.
Justice Jasmine Akbarali ruled that UIA’s negligence was grounded in the fact that hours before the departure of Flight 752, Iran had launched ballistic missiles against US forces in Iraq in retaliation for the assassination of IRGC leader General Soleimani and was on high alert for a counterattack.
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