Air France vs. Saks

Air France vs.
Saks
Legal Basis cited:
Article 17 and 18 of the Warsaw Convention
Article 17
"The carrier shall be liable for damage sustained in the event of the death or wounding of a
passenger or any other bodily injury suffered by a passenger, if the accident which caused
the damage so sustained took place on board the aircraft or in the course of any of the
operations of embarking or disembarking.
Article 18
"(1) The carrier shall be liable for damage sustained in the event of the destruction or loss
of, or of damage to, any checked baggage or any goods, if the occurrence which caused the
damage so sustained took place during the transportation by air."
The 1966 Montreal Agreement (a private agreement among airlines that has been approved by
the Federal Government)
Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation
The Case
On March 04, 1985, the Supreme Court issued a 8-0 decision stating that the case of Air
France v. Saks (docket no. 83-1785) should be reversed and remanded and upholding the
law in question [Treaty] as constitutional. The judgment rested on the Court's authority over
statutory construction. It was decided by an opinion of the court (orally argued) and was
conservative in nature.
The Court undertook review of the case via cert, citing federal court conflict as its reason for
taking up the case, and heard the case on January 15, 1985. The case originated in the
California Central U.S. District Court and was reviewed by the U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth
Circuit before reaching the U.S. Supreme Court.
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor authored the majority opinion. (O'CONNOR, J., delivered the
opinion of the Court, in which all other Members joined, except POWELL, J., who took no
part in the consideration or decision of the case.)
The case originated in the California Central U.S. District Court. It was then appealed to the
U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, which ruled in a liberal direction and stated that the
earlier decision be reversed.
FACTS:
On November 16, 1980, respondent Valerie Saks boarded an Air France jetliner in Paris for a
12-hour flight to Los Angeles. The flight went smoothly in all respects until, as the aircraft
descended to Los Angeles, Saks felt severe pressure and pain in her left ear.
The pain continued after the plane landed, but Saks disembarked without informing any Air
France crew member or employee of her ailment.
Five days later, Saks consulted a doctor, who concluded that she had become permanently deaf
in her left ear.
Saks filed suit against Air France in California state court, alleging that her hearing loss was
caused by negligent maintenance and operation of the jetliner's pressurization system. She
argued that "accident" should be defined as a "hazard of air travel," and that her injury had indeed
been caused by such a hazard.
Air France moved for summary judgment on the ground that respondent could not prove that
her injury was caused by an "accident" within the meaning of the Warsaw Convention.
- The term "accident," according to Air France, means an "abnormal, unusual or

unexpected occurrence aboard the aircraft."All the available evidence, including
the postflight reports, pilot's affidavit, and passenger testimony, indicated that the
aircraft's pressurization system had operated in the usual manner.
Accordingly, the airline contended that the suit should be dismissed because the only alleged
cause of respondent's injury -- normal operation of a pressurization system -- could not qualify
as an "accident."
Relying on precedent that defines the term "accident" in Article 17 as an "unusual or unexpected"
happening, the District Court granted summary judgment to petitioner.
The Court of Appeals reversed, holding that:

- the language, history, and policy of the Warsaw Convention and the Montreal
Agreement (a private agreement among airlines that has been approved by the Federal
Government) impose absolute liability on airlines for injuries proximately caused by the
risks inherent in air travel; and
- that normal cabin pressure changes qualify as an "accident" within the definition
contained in Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation as meaning "an
occurrence associated with the operation of an aircraft.
ISSUE:
Whether or not a loss of hearing proximately caused by normal operation of the aircraft's
pressurization system is an 'accident' within the meaning of Article 17 of the Warsaw Convention
which would render Air France liable.
RULING:
The US Supreme Court disagreed with the definition of "accident" adopted by the Court of Appeals,
and reversed the latters decision.
Air France is liable to a passenger under the terms of the Warsaw Convention only if the passenger
proves that an "accident" was the cause of her injury.
Liability under Article 17 arises only if a passenger's injury is caused by an unexpected or unusual
event or happening that is external to the passenger, and not where the injury results from the
passenger's own internal reaction to the usual, normal, and expected operation of the aircraft.
(a) The text of the Warsaw Convention suggests that the passenger's injury must be so
caused. The difference in the language of Article 17, imposing liability for injuries to
passengers caused by an "accident" and Article 18, imposing liability for destruction
or loss of baggage by an "occurrence," implies that the drafters of the Convention
understood the word "accident" to mean something different than the word
"occurrence."
- Moreover, Article 17 refers to an accident which caused the passenger's
injury, and not to an accident which is the passenger's injury. The text thus
implies that, however "accident" is defined, it is the cause of the injury that
must satisfy the definition, rather than the occurrence of the injury alone.
- And, since the Warsaw Convention was drafted in French by continental

jurists, further guidance is furnished by the French legal meaning of "accident"
-- when used to describe a cause of injury, rather than the event of injury -- as
being a fortuitous, unexpected, unusual, or unintended event.
(b) The above interpretation of Article 17 is consistent with the negotiating history of the
Warsaw Convention, the conduct of the parties thereto, and the weight of precedent in
foreign and American courts.
(c) Enforcement of Article 17's "accident" requirement cannot be circumvented by

reference to the Montreal Agreement. That Agreement, while requiring airlines to waive
"due care" defenses under Article 20(1) of the Warsaw Convention, did not waive Article
17's "accident" requirement. Nor can enforcement of Article 17 be escaped by reference
to the equation of "accident" with "occurrence" in Annex 13, which, with its corresponding
Convention, expressly applies to aircraft accident investigations, and not to principles of
liability to passengers under the Warsaw Convention.
The judgment of the Court of Appeals is reversed, and the case is remanded for further
proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Air France vs. Saks

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What was the case about?

What were the facts of the case?

Air France vs.

Legal Basis cited:

Article 17 and 18 of the Warsaw Convention

Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation

- The term "accident," according to Air France, means an "abnormal, unusual or

The Court of Appeals reversed, holding that:

- And, since the Warsaw Convention was drafted in French by continental

(c) Enforcement of Article 17's "accident" requirement cannot be circumvented by

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