Boeing Lion Air Crash Cases Must Be Resolved by Admiralty Judges

The Boeing Co. succeeded Tuesday in its bid to avoid jury trials after a high-profile air disaster when the Seventh Circuit ruled lawsuits brought by families of victims must be heard in admiralty courts, which don’t use juries.

The family members or representatives of the victims of the 2018 Lion Air disaster where a Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashed into the Java Sea, killing all 189 aboard, must pursue their claims under the Death on the High Seas Act, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit ruled. DOHSA limits the ability of victims’ family members to sue ...