Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MC 99 Compress
MC 99 Compress
MC 99 Compress
Work while everyone is resting; Achieve while everyone is dreaming; For those who sacrifice, May the spirit of success
Study while everyone is sleeping; Believe while everyone is mocking; For those who endure, guide you.
- Lyndon
Montreal Convention of 1999
Batch 2021●Lyndon J.C.
the last leg of his trip was performed entirely The carrier shall deliver to the passenger a
within the territory of the same State. baggage identification tag for each piece of
checked baggage.
CARRIAGE PERFORMED BY STATE
AND The passenger shall be given written notice to
CARRIAGE OF POSTAL ITEMS the effect that where this Convention is
applicable it governs and may limit the liability
In the carriage of postal items performed by the of carriers in respect of death or injury and for
State or by legally constituted public bodies, the destruction or loss of, or damage to, baggage,
carrier shall be liable ONLY to the relevant and for delay.
postal administration in accordance with the
rules applicable to the relationship between the Query: Does the existence or validity of the
carriers and the postal administrations. contract of carriage is affected by the non-
compliance with the foregoing requirements?
Exception: Except as provided in above
paragraph, the provisions of this Convention Ans: No. Article 3(5) of MC 99 provided
shall not apply to the carriage of postal items. that Non-compliance with the provisions of the
foregoing paragraphs shall not affect the
CHAPTER II existence or the validity of the contract of
DOCUMENTATION AND DUTIES OF carriage, which shall, nonetheless, be subject to
THE PARTIES RELATING TO THE the rules of this Convention including those
CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS, relating to limitation of liability.
BAGGAGE AND CARGO
II. Cargo
I. Passengers and Baggage
In carriage of cargo, an air waybill shall be
In carriage of passengers, an individual or delivered.
collective document of carriage shall be
delivered containing: The air waybill or the cargo receipt shall
a. An indication of the places of departure include:
and destination a. An indication of the places of
b. If the places of departure and destination departure and destination;
are within the territory of a single State b. If the places of departure and
Party, one or more agreed stopping destination are within the territory of
places being within the territory of a single State Party, one or more
another State, an indication of at least agreed stopping places being within
one such stopping place the territory of another State, an
indication of at least one such stopping
place; and
c. An indication of the weight of the
consignment.
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a. the carrier of cargo has the right to The consignor is liable to the carrier for any
require the consignor to make out damage occasioned by the absence,
separate air waybills; insufficiency or irregularity of any such
b. the consignor has the right to require information that the consignor is ought to
the carrier to deliver separate cargo furnish as necessary to meet the formalities of
receipts when the other means of customs, police and any other public authorities
preserving a record of the carriage other before the cargo can be delivered to the
than the delivery of an airway bill. consignee.
Exception: Unless the damage is due to
Note: the non-compliance with the documentary the fault of the carrier, its servants or agents.
requirements does not affect the validity of the (Article 16[1], MC99)
contract of carriage.
LIABILITY OF THE CARRIER
RESPONSIBILITY FOR PARTICULARS
OF DOCUMENTATION The carrier shall indemnify the
a. Consignor against all damage suffered
The consignor (shipper) is responsible for: by it; or
b. By any other person to whom the
a. For the correctness of the particulars and
consignor is liable.
statements relating to the cargo:
by reason of the irregularity, incorrectness or
i. Inserted by it or on its behalf in incompleteness of the particulars and
the airway bill; or statements inserted by the carrier or on its
behalf in the cargo receipt or in the record
ii. Furnished by it or on its behalf to
preserved by the other means other than the
the carrier for insertion in the airway bill.
cargo receipt or for insertion in
the record preserved by the other Note: The carrier is under no obligation to
means other than an airway bill. enquire into the correctness or sufficiency of the
information that is necessary to meet the
LIABILITY OF THE CONSIGNOR formalities of the customs before delivery can
(SHIPPER) be made to the consignee (Article 16[2], MC99)
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Montreal Convention of 1999
Batch 2021●Lyndon J.C.
The consignor has the right to dispose of the Ans: Article 12(4) of MC99 states that
cargo: the rights conferred on the consignor ceases at
a. By withdrawing it at the airport of the moment when that on the consignee begins.
departure or destination; Exception: if the consignee declines to
b. By stopping it in the course of the accept the cargo, or cannot be
journey on any landing; communicated with, the consignor
c. By calling for it to be delivered at the resumes its right of disposition.
place of destination or in the course of
the journey to a person other than the RIGHTS OF CONSIGNEE OF THE
consignee originally designated; CARGO
d. By requiring it to be returned to the
airport of departure. The consignee is entitled, on arrival of the cargo
at the place of destination:
The abovementioned rights can be exercised i. To require the carrier to deliver the
when the following requirements are present: cargo to it. Provided that he paid the
i. The consignor must not exercise this charges due and on complying with
right of disposition in such a way as the conditions of carriage
to prejudice the carrier or other
consignors General Rule: it is the duty of the carrier to give
ii. The consignor must reimburse any notice to the consignee as soon as the cargo
expenses occasioned by the exercise arrives.
of this right.
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loss of, or damage to, the cargo If the carrier proves that the damage was caused
resulted from one or more of the or contributed to by the negligence or other
following: wrongful act or omission of:
i. Inherent defect, quality or 1. the person claiming compensation; or
vice of that cargo; 2. The person from whom he or she derives
ii. Defective packaging of his or her rights.
that cargo performed by a The carrier shall be wholly or partly exonerated
person other than the from its liability to the claimant. To such extent
carrier or its servants or that such negligence or wrongful act or
agents; omission caused or contributed to the damage.
iii. An act or war or an armed
conflict; The common carrier shall likewise be wholly or
iv. An act of public authority partly exonerated from its liability, in cases of
carried out in connection death or injury of a passenger compensation is
with the entry, exit or being claimed, to the extent that it proves that
transit of the cargo. the damage was caused or contributed by the
negligence or other wrongful act or omission of
Note: the period of the carriage by air does not that passenger.
extend to any carriage by land, by sea or inland
waterway performed outside an airport COMPENSATION IN CASE OF DEATH
Exception: If such carriage takes place in OR INJURY OF PASSENGERS
the performance of a contract of carriage by air,
for the purpose of loading, delivery or For damages arising from DEATH or BODILY
transshipment, any damage is presumed, subject INJURY:
to proof to the contrary. 1. Not exceeding 100,000 Special Drawing
Rights (SDR) for each passenger, the
III. Delay of Passenger, Baggage or carrier shall not be able to exclude or
Cargo limit its liability
2. In cases that the damage exceeds
The carrier is liable for damage occasioned by 100,000 SDR, the carrier may present
delay in the carriage by air of passengers, evidence to exclude or exonerate itself
baggage or cargo from liability. If he proves that:
Exception: The carrier shall not be liable a. Such damage was not due to the
for damage occasioned by the delay if it proves negligence or other wrongful act
that it and its servants and agents took all or omission of the carrier or its
measures that could reasonably be required to servants or agents; or
avoid the damage or that it was impossible for it b. Such damage was solely due to
or them to take such measures. the negligence or wrongful act or
omission of a third party.
IV. Exoneration of Carrier
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weight of such package/s shall be the carrier shall, if required by its national law,
taken into consideration. make advance payments without delay to a
4. The limits aforementioned shall not natural person/s who are entitled to claim
prevent the court from awarding, in compensation in order to meet the
accordance with its own law, in addition, IMMEDIATE ECONOMIC NEEDS of such
the whole or part of the court costs and persons.
other expenses of the litigation incurred
by the plaintiff, including interest. Theoretical Case Question:
5. The limits may be availed by a servant
or agent if there is an action that is X died in a plane crash bound from
brought against them out of damage to Jakarta to Ghana which was owned and
which the Convention relates if they operated by ABC Airlines. In X’s national law,
prove that: a mandatory advance payment should be made
a. They acted within the scope of to the family to take care of the immediate
their employment needs of the wake and burial of X. ABC
Airlines proceeded to make the necessary
STIPULATION ON LIMITS advance payments. By the time that X was
properly buried, the family filed a claim to the
A carrier may stipulate that the contract of court asking for damages. They contended that
carriage shall be subject to higher limits of since ABC Airlines paid them the mandatory
liability than those provided for in this advance payment for X’s burial, the latter
Convention impliedly admit and recognize its liability. Is the
contention of X’s heirs valid?
Note: Any provision tending to relieve the
carrier of liability or fix a lower than that which Ans: No, the heirs cannot claim that the making
is laid down in this Convention shall be null and of advance payment was in any way an
void. But the nullity of any of such provision admission of liability of ABC Airlines. Article
will not affect the validity of the whole contract. 28, of MC99 stated that the advance payment
made shall not constitute a recognition of
Nothing contained in this Convention shall liability. And if in case that the ABC Airlines is
prevent the carrier from refusing to enter into liable, such amount made may be offset against
any contract of carriage, from waiving any to the award of damages to X’s heirs.
defenses available under the Convention, or
from laying down conditions which do not TIMELY NOTICE OF COMPLAINTS
conflict with the provisions of this Convention.
Receipt by the person entitled to delivery of
checked baggage or cargo without complaint is
ADVANCE PAYMENTS prima facie evidence that the same has been
delivered in good condition and in accordance
In case of aircraft accidents resulting in: with the document of carriage
a. Death; or
b. Injury of passengers, In case of damage, the person entitled to
delivery must:
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a. Complain to the carrier forthwith after In case of damage resulting to the death or
the discovery of the damage. injury of a passenger, an action may be brought
b. The complaint must be made within 7 before one of the courts mentioned above (a-e)
days from the receipt of checked or in the territory of a State Party which at the
baggage and 14 days after the receipt of time of the accident of the passenger has his
cargo. principal and permanent residence.
c. In case of delay, the complaint must be
made at the latest within 21 days from LIMITATION OF ACTIONS
the date on which the baggage/cargo (PRESCRIPTION)
have been placed at his disposal.
The right to damages shall be extinguished if an
General Rule: Upon the expiration of the said action is not brought within a period of two
times, no action shall lie against the carrier years, reckoned from:
Exception: save in case of fraud on the 1. The date of arrival at the destination; or
part of the carrier 2. From the date on which the aircraft
ought to have arrived; or
Note: Every complaint must be made in writing 3. From the date on which the carriage
and given or dispatched within the times stopped
aforesaid.
SUCCESSIVE CARRIAGE
Query: What if the person liable to pay the In the case of carriage to be performed by
damages died. Is there any recourse available to various successive carriers and falling within the
the victims? requirements of being covered by this
Ans: Yes, under Article 32 of MC99, in Convention, each carrier which shall accepts
case of the death of the person liable, an action passengers, baggage or cargo is deemed to be
for damages lies against those legally one of the parties to the contract of carriage in
representing his or her estate. so far as the contract deals with that part of the
carriage which is performed under its
supervision.
JURISDICTION In successive carriage, the passenger or any
person entitled to compensation in respect of
An action for damages must be brought, at the
him or her can take action ONLY against the
option of the plaintiff,
carrier which performed the carriage during the
a. In the territory of one of the State
accident or the delay occurred.
Parties;
Exception: Where by express agreement
b. Either before the court of domicile of the
the first carrier has assumed liability for the
carrier;
whole journey.
c. Principal place of business of the carrier;
d. Where it has a place of business through
In case of baggage or cargo, the following rules
which the contract has been made;
shall apply:
e. Before the court at the place of
1. The passenger or consignor will have
destination.
a right of action against the FIRST
CARRIER; and
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RESPECTIVE LIABILITY OF
CONTRACTING AND ACTUAL
CARRIERS
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