As from 28 December 2024, the liability limits prescribed by the Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air – 1999 (“Montreal Convention”), applicable to international flights, will be adjusted in cases of death or bodily injury, flight delays, as well as the destruction, loss, damage or delay of baggage or cargo.

This is the fourth revision of the compensation limits under the Montreal Convention, which provides for the automatic adjustment of inflation every five years (Article 24), with the International Civil Aviation Organization (“ICAO”) having informed the 140 States Parties, including Brazil, of this change.

The application of the new limits by the courts is of utmost importance in ensuring that the Montreal Convention remains relevant. Both airlines and their insurers should insist on the application of the updated limits, even if this results in higher payments. Otherwise, any failure to keep the Montreal Convention limits up to date may serve as an argument against its application, as occurred with the Warsaw Convention – 1929, which, despite being amended by the Hague Protocol – 1955 and the Montreal Protocols – 1975, saw its compensation limits eroded by inflation over several decades.

The Montreal Convention establishes liability limits in Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), a unit of account of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) composed of a basket of currencies (namely the US dollar, euro, Chinese yuan, Japanese yen and pound sterling). In mid-October 2024, one SDR was equivalent to approximately USD 1.33.

On 28 December 2024, the limits will be revised as follows: