韩亚悲剧:空难受害者能在哪里起诉韩亚航空

The Asiana Airlines jet crash on Saturday will likely generate litigation. But where the bulk of it will take place is very much an open question.

韩亚航空(Asiana Airlines)上周六的飞机坠毁事故可能会引发诉讼。但大部分官司在哪里打是个问题。

The U.S. is a highly sought venue for lawsuits because damage awards for pain and suffering and emotional distress in U.S. courts are typically much larger than in other countries. The crash, which killed two Chinese teenagers and injured 182 others, occurred on U.S. soil, but that doesn't guarantee entry into U.S. courts.

很多人想在美国打这场官司，因为美国法院对伤痛、苦难和精神损害给予的赔偿金额一般远超其它国家。这次飞机失事造成中国两名青少年遇难，182人受伤，事故发生在美国境内，但这并不能保证美国法院会受理此案。

The method of compensating victims of international airline crashes is governed by a treaty known as the Montreal Convention, which came into force in 2003. Under the treaty, Asiana, of South Korea, is automatically liable for as much as about $150,000 in damages per injured passenger─damages that would likely be paid by the airline's insurers, legal experts said. Passengers could seek more money from Asiana if they can show the airline was at fault for the crash.

有关国际航班空难遇难者的赔偿问题适用2003年实施生效的《蒙特利尔公约》(Montreal Convention)。根据该公约，韩国的韩亚航空应自动为每位受伤乘客赔偿15万美元左右。法律专家说，赔偿费可能由韩亚航空的保险公司支付。如果乘客能拿出韩亚航空对坠机事故负有责任的证据，也许能要求该公司做出更多赔付。

But legal experts were divided on where passengers would be allowed to file any claims. The treaty allows victims of the crash to sue Asiana in U.S. courts if they are permanent U.S. residents, purchased tickets in the U.S. or were flying into the U.S. as a final destination.

但关于乘客可在何地提起诉讼的问题，法律专家看法不一。根据《蒙特利尔公约》的规定，如果遇难者是美国永久居民、在美国境内购票或飞往美国将其作为最终目的地，则可向美国法院起诉韩亚航空。

Representatives of Asiana couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

记者无法立即联系到韩亚航空的代表置评。

Most of the passengers weren't U.S. residents, including 141 Chinese and 77 Koreans. There were 64 Americans aboard. A big question will likely be whether courts consider the U.S. a final destination for foreigners with round-trip tickets.

失事客机上的大多数乘客（包括中国籍141人和韩国籍77人）都不是美国居民，美国籍乘客为64人。可能一个很重要的问题是，法院是否认为美国是那些购买了往返票的外籍人士的最终目的地。

'For a Chinese person with a round-trip ticket, the final destination is China,' said Mike Danko, a trial lawyer based in Redwood City, Calif., who is working with foreign counsel for some of the victims. He predicted the U.S. courts would knock many of the passenger claims to foreign jurisdictions.

加州雷德伍德城(Redwood City)的庭辩律师、目前正与外国顾问一起代理部分伤亡者案件的丹科(Mike Danko)说，对于购买了返程票的中国人而言，其最终目的地是中国。他预测，美国法院会将很多乘客的索赔要求驳至外国司法管辖地。

But Ladd Sanger, an aviation lawyer and commercially rated pilot, said, 'I think there's a good argument that everyone on that airplane could bring a case in the U.S.'

但航空案件律师、商业飞行员桑格(Ladd Sanger)说，我认为完全有理由提出，失事飞机上的所有人都可在美国提起诉讼。

Mr. Sanger said U.S. courts have split on the meaning of 'final destination' in the Warsaw Convention, the predecessor of the Montreal Convention.

桑格说，美国法院对于《蒙特利尔公约》的前身《华沙公约》(Warsaw Convention)中“最终目的地”一词的含意存在分歧。

U.S. courts have occasionally ignored jurisdictional requirements of the treaty, he said, sending cases to the place where the crash occurred. That happened in the aftermath of Air France Flight 447, which crashed into the Atlantic Ocean in 2009, killing all 216 passengers and 12 aircrew.

他说，美国法院有时会忽略公约中的司法管辖权要求，直接在空难发生地提交案件。法国航空公司(Air France)447航班2009年在大西洋坠毁后，就有过这样的案例。那次事故造成216名乘客和12名机组人员全部遇难。

Regardless of where claims against Asiana could be filed, passengers may still sue other parties in U.S. courts, such as the aircraft manufacturer, the aircraft-parts makers and the federal government, which controls air traffic, Mr. Danko said.

丹科说，无论在哪里提起对韩亚航空的诉讼，都不影响乘客向美国法院起诉其它当事人，如飞机生产商、飞机零部件生产商和进行空中交通管理的美国联邦政府。

The findings of the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the crash, aren't admissible in court. So it is possible a passenger could proceed with a claim against the manufacturer or another party besides Asiana, even if the NTSB concludes the crash was the result of pilot error, legal experts said.

美国国家运输安全委员会(National Transportation Safety Board)正在调查这次坠机事故，但调查结果不会被美国法院采纳。法律专家因此说，即使该委员会得出结论，认为事故由飞行员失误造成，乘客仍可将除韩亚航空外的飞机生产商或其它方告上法庭。

Under federal law, lawyers are prohibited from contacting victims or victims' families until 45 days after air crashes. In the past, according to Mr. Danko, airlines have used that time to make settlement offers.

依据美国联邦法律，律师不得在空难发生后45天内联系受害人或其家属。丹科表示，航空公司以前会用这段时间提出和解方案。