Tuesday, June 11, 2024 The Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruled that Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) must pay full compensation to the families who lost loved ones in the downing of UIA Flight 752 in Iran in January 2020. The families of 21 passengers, represented by the Vancouver-based CFM Lawyers LLP and the Toronto-based Howie Sacks & Henry LLP, have been awarded this compensation. Flight PS752, which was carrying Canadian citizens and permanent residents, was shot down over Tehran by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in the early morning hours of January 8, 2020, amidst escalating military tensions with the United States.
The court found UIA negligent for not adequately assessing the risks of operating the flight out of Tehran. Justice Jasmine Akbarali stated that UIA’s negligence stemmed from the fact that hours before Flight 752’s departure, Iran had launched ballistic missiles at US forces in Iraq in retaliation for the assassination of IRGC leader General Soleimani and was on high alert for a counterattack. This judgment came after an 18-day trial in Toronto, which concluded in January 2024.
“This is an important result for our clients who lost loved ones in the downing of Flight 752,” says Joe Fiorante of CFM Lawyers LLP. “For the first time, the families now have complete answers to UIA’s role in this horrible tragedy.” The judgment means that under the Montreal Convention, the international law which governs the international carriage of passeng.
