The Rome Convention and its modernization
The Third
International Conference on Private Air Law met at the Accademia
dei Lincei, Palazzo Corsini, Rome, Italy from 15 to 29
May 1933. This conference adopted two conventions, as follows: 1) The Convention
for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to Damage Caused by Foreign
Aircraft to Third Parties on the Surface; 2) The Convention for the
Unification of Certain Rules Relating to the Preventive Seizure of Aircraft.
Both conventions were signed on 29 May 1933 by 20 States. The purpose of these
conventions were to ensure adequate compensation for persons who suffer damage
caused on the surface by foreign aircraft while limiting in a reasonable manner
the extent of liabilities incurred for such damage in order not to hinder the
development of international air transport.
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Italy
– 29 September 1952 Diplomatic
Conference on International Air Law This
Conference adopted of the Rome
Convention on damage caused by foreign aircraft to third parties on the
surface |
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Trieste
Zone A – 1 October 1952 The above Italian stamp was
overprinted with AMG‑FTT (Allied Military Government ‑ Free
Territory of Trieste) by the Allied Military Government of U.S. and Great
Britain. |
This
Convention was amended by the Brussels
Protocol signed on 29 May 1933 during the Fourth International Conference
on Private Air Law which met at the Palais des Académies, Brussels, Belgium from 19 to 30 September 1938.
This Protocol permitted insurers to use some basic defences. The 1933
Convention was formally adopted by very few States.
A Diplomatic
Conference on International Air Law, convened by ICAO in Rome, Italy (in the
FAO Palace) at the invitation of the Italian
Government, met from 9 September to 6 October 1952. An amended Convention on
Damage Caused by Foreign Aircraft to Third Parties on the Surface was
adopted and signed on 7 October 1952 to unify, on an international level, the
law relating to recovery by persons who suffer damage caused on the surface by
foreign aircraft, while limiting the liabilities of those responsible for such
damage. The Convention also deals with a host of related matters such as
apportionment of claims, financial security requirements, jurisdiction and
enforcement of judgements. Entered into force on 4 February 1958, the new
Convention was the result of several years’ work by the ICAO Legal Committee;
in drafting the new Convention, account was taken of the legal and economic problems arising from the tremendous
development of international air transport after World War II.
An International Conference
on Air Law was convened at Montreal from 6 to 23 September 1978. The Protocol
to Amend the Convention on Damage Caused by Foreign Aircraft to Third
Parties on the Surface was adopted and signed on
23 September 1978, and in particular increased the limits of
liability. Delegates from 58 States participated in this Conference. The
Protocol entered into force on 25 July 2002. However, neither the Rome Convention
nor the Montreal Protocol have received wide acceptance. One of the reasons for
this situation is that the limits of liability in the Convention and the
Protocol are perceived as inadequate. Furthermore, the regime of absolute
liability, the jurisdictional clauses, and provisions relating to financial
security have also been regarded by some as not fully satisfactory.
The 31st
Session of the Legal Committee (Montreal, 28 August to
8 September 2000) included in its Work Programme the subject “Consideration of the modernization of the
Convention on Damage Caused by Foreign Aircraft to Third Parties on the Surface
signed at Rome on 7 October 1952“. A
Special Group on the modernization of the Rome Convention developed two draft
Conventions: 1) Convention on Compensation for Damage to Third Parties,
Resulting from Acts of Unlawful Interference Involving Aircraft; 2) Convention
on Compensation for Damage Caused by Aircraft to Third Parties. These two
drafts were considered and adopted at the International Conference on Air Law on Compensation
for Damage Caused by Aircraft to Third Parties Arising from Acts of Unlawful
Interference or from General Risks, held at Montreal from 20 April to 2 May 2009.
The
objective with these two new air law conventions is to ensure equitable
benefits for victims while not unduly increasing the economic and regulatory
burden on carriers; the fight against the effects of terrorism and the
improvement of the status of victims involving aircraft form the cornerstone of
the two new conventions. The one legal instrument adopted by the Conference is
the Convention on Compensation for Damage
to Third Parties, Resulting from Acts of Unlawful Interference Involving
Aircraft. At the heart of this new instrument, is the creation of an International Civil Aviation Compensation
Fund, which may potentially provide victims of an event compensation in
addition to that paid by the aircraft operator, up to an amount of 3 billion
Special Drawing Rights (approximately US $4.5 billion). The other instrument,
the Convention on Compensation for Damage
Caused by Aircraft to Third Parties, modernizes the current legal framework
provided for under the 1952 Rome Convention and related Montreal Protocol of
1978. It covers cases of damage
caused by aircraft as a result of safety related matters and not involving an
act of unlawful interference and provides for full compensation of victims.
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Italy – 29 September 1952 Diplomatic
Conference on International Air Law First
Day Covers |
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Trieste Zone A – 1 October 1952 Diplomatic
Conference on International Air Law First
Day Covers and Maximum Card |
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Montreal - 20 April to 2 May 2009 - Commemorative
postcard International Conference on Air
Law on Compensation for Damage Caused
by Aircraft to Third Parties Arising from Acts of Unlawful Interference or
from General Risks |
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