Family members of the victims of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 are filing a RM4.95 billion lawsuit against aircraft manufacturer Boeing and Malaysia Airlines in the United States.
Chicago-based law firm Ribbeck Law Chartered, which specialises in aviation law, have started proceedings by filing a petition of discovery in an Illinois court, on behalf of the family members.
Monica Kelly, representing Ribbeck Law, said the firm was approached by family members from China and Indonesia. She said her firm had spoken to family members in many countries and expected about half of them to take part in the suit.
Kelly said the fact that neither the wreckage of Flight MH370 nor the bodies of those on board have been found would not affect the case, as they would be inspecting the rest of the Malaysia Airlines fleet for similar design flaws.
“We’ve had successful cases where the plane, the victims or even the black box were not found,” said Kelly, during a briefing with the press in Kuala Lumpur.
Manuel Von Ribbeck, of Ribbeck Law, said they were 100% confident of winning the suit.
He explained that was because in the eyes of the law, passengers are never at fault, and it was merely a matter of ensuring the family were compensated fully.
Ribbeck said the coverage for compensation was about US$1.5bil (RM4.95bil), and the firm would demand the full amount be paid.
The suit is proceeding on the assumption that all on board Flight MH370 have perished, as per Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Razak’s announcement on the status of the missing jetliner on Monday night.
“We hope that miracles can happen. But based on the data we’ve seen so far, it does not look good for the flight and her passengers,” said Ribbeck.
See also: Malaysia Airlines might need a government bailout
Story: The Star Online
