On Dec. 29, 2024, the families of victims of the Jeju Air disaster at Muan International Airport in South Jeolla will file a damages lawsuit against the state, Korea Airports Corporation (KAC), Jeju Air and Boeing.
Law firm One said on the 6th that it was selected as the legal representative for the families. The families are preparing the suit in line with the two-year statute of limitations under the Montreal Convention, an international treaty on airlines' liability for passenger deaths and injuries occurring during international air carriage.
In April, the families' council asked 30 domestic law firms for proposals to fairly select a firm to represent the suit. After document screening and a presentation (PT) review of firms that submitted proposals, the families voted to select Law firm One as the firm to carry out the suit. So far, the families of 73 of the 179 disaster victims have entrusted the suit to Law firm One.
Before formally filing the suit, Law firm One submitted an application to preserve evidence to the Mokpo branch of the Gwangju District Court on the 6th, citing concerns that accident-related evidence could be lost or damaged.
Belongings recovered after the accident are being kept in a separate warehouse. Searches for remains and belongings are still underway at the crash site. It was also determined that closed-circuit (CC) TV footage shot at Muan Airport contains videos and other material suggesting that the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board did not preserve the crash site.
Law firm One represented the families of victims of the Sewol ferry disaster in a damages suit against the state. It is currently pursuing a damages suit on behalf of the families of 28 victims of the deadly crowd crush in the nightlife district of Itaewon. Law firm One said it plans to uncover the truth and secure just compensation in the lawsuit over the Jeju Air passenger plane disaster at Muan Airport.
Attorney Lee Su-dong of Law firm One said, "By uniting the wishes of the families, the goal of the suit is to clearly uncover the truth of the accident and to make responsibility clear so that such a tragedy is never repeated," adding, "Starting with preserving evidence, we will proceed swiftly and thoroughly with the main suit against the state, Korea Airports Corporation (KAC), and Jeju Air."