CHICAGO, IL — A federal jury in Chicago has awarded $29 million to the family of Michael “Mick” Ryan, an Irish engineer and United Nations humanitarian worker who was killed in the March 10, 2019 crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. With pre-judgment interest, the judgment will total $38 million.
Ryan’s widow, Naoise Connolly Ryan, brought the case on behalf of herself and the couple’s two children. The family was represented by Steven C. Marks and Kristina M. Infante of Podhurst Orseck, P.A.
“Seven years after the tragic and preventable loss of Michael ‘Mick’ Ryan, the verdict represents an important measure of accountability and justice for our client. While no financial award can ever replace a life or undo the profound loss his family has endured, we are grateful that the jury carefully considered the evidence and reached this decision,” said Steven C. Marks, Managing Partner at Podhurst Orseck.
Mick Ryan was a devoted husband and father whose work reflected his deep commitment to improving the lives of others. A native of County Clare, Ireland, Ryan was 39 years old and working as an engineer with the U.N. World Food Programme when he died.
Over the course of his career, he had been deployed to some of the world’s most difficult humanitarian crises, including the Ebola response in Liberia and relief efforts for Rohingya refugees. He was traveling to Nairobi, Kenya, for work when Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed just six minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, killing all 157 people aboard.
“For years, Naoise Connolly Ryan has pursued justice for Mick with extraordinary strength and determination, and we have been honored to stand beside her in her unwavering pursuit to hold Boeing accountable,” said Kristina M. Infante, Partner at Podhurst Orseck.
Boeing’s Admitted Liability
Boeing has acknowledged that a faulty flight-control system known as MCAS contributed to both the Ethiopian Airlines crash and the October 2018 crash of Lion Air Flight 610 in Indonesia, which killed 189 people. The two disasters, occurring less than five months apart, claimed 346 lives and led to the worldwide grounding of the 737 MAX fleet.
Because Boeing had already admitted responsibility for the crash, the Ryan trial focused solely on determining the damages owed to his surviving family members for their losses.
The Ryan verdict is one of the final cases in a long line of civil litigation stemming from the two crashes. The vast majority of claims brought by victims’ families have been resolved through confidential settlements rather than trials. Naoise Connolly Ryan, however, was committed to pursuing accountability through a jury verdict rather than accepting a direct settlement from Boeing.
“We came to federal court, for a civil trial, because we wanted public accountability. We got it. A jury decided this case, not Boeing. For us, that makes the outcome so much more meaningful,” said Naoise Connolly Ryan.
The litigation has unfolded alongside separate federal action against Boeing. Earlier this year, a federal judge approved a Justice Department request to dismiss its long-running criminal fraud case against the company over its handling of the 737 MAX’s flight-control system, in exchange for Boeing agreeing to pay or invest an additional $1.1 billion toward fines, victim compensation, and internal safety and quality improvements.
“Although today’s verdict marks a significant milestone, the broader effort to hold Boeing responsible for this tragedy, and to help prevent anything like it from happening again, is just as important,” said Marks.
The case was heard before the Honorable Jorge L. Alonso in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
