British Airways to cover legal costs in DVT battle

1.00pm

LONDON - British Airways has breathed new life into a previously crippled case brought against it by victims of DVT or "economy class syndrome", saying on Monday it would pick up the legal bill if the claimants failed.

The BA decision will allow victims of the condition -- typified by sometimes-fatal blood clots which many blame on long flights and cramped seats -- to take their case to the country's highest court, the House of Lords.

The potential cost of further court action had been prohibitive for the claimants -- in Britain the losing side is typically responsible for the legal costs incurred by the winner.

While on the surface BA's move seems to work against its own interests, lawyers close to the matter have said that the airline is hoping that a favourable verdict in the House of Lords will set a precedent and help quash similar legal actions around the world.

The group of claimants has been trying to pin responsibility for the condition, also known as deep vein thrombosis, on the airlines.

"We have agreed to waive our costs if we are successful," said Sean Gates, a lawyer for BA, Europe's biggest airline. Gates said if BA won, the amount it would pay in legal fees would only be in the region of tens of thousands of pounds.

Ruth Christoffersen, whose daughter, Emma, 28, died of DVT after a flight from Australia, said she was happy about the decision but remained cautious.

"I am glad they are doing it because we can go ahead, close one chapter in this terrible tragedy. But we have been down this road a few times only to have our hopes built up and then dashed," said Christoffersen, who has been leading the charge against the airlines in Britain.

On July 3, a British court delivered a severe setback to 24 victims of the condition by barring them from suing some of the world's largest airlines. The claimants had appealed against a previous High Court decision that struck down an attempt to sue more than 25 airlines for DVT.

The airlines contend, and lower English courts have agreed, that DVT could not be deemed an "accident" according to the 1929 Warsaw Convention governing air travel. Instead, courts have decided that DVT results from normal reactions to flights.

BA is the only carrier of many involved in the appeals case -- which include Australia's Qantas Airways Ltd. and the United States' Continental Airlines Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp. -- to say it would not claim legal fees if it won.

Lawyers for the claimants said they are hoping to lodge a new petition with the House of Lords in the coming week.

- REUTERS

Herald Features:
Economy class syndrome