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A United States jury on Friday determined that aerospace manufacturer Boeing is not liable for lost revenue in a high-stakes lawsuit centred on the 20-month grounding of its 737 MAX aircraft.
The legal challenge was brought forward by Polish airline LOT, which had sought $250 million in damages.
The carrier accused Boeing of fraud, alleging that the manufacturer made deliberate and negligent false representations and omissions regarding the aircraft’s safety systems before the global grounding.
The litigation originated from the lengthy grounding of the 737 MAX fleet between March 2019 and November 2020, a mandate enacted following two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 that claimed 346 lives.
Boeing later acknowledged that a flawed flight-stabilisation software system, known as MCAS, contributed to the disasters.
Following the verdict in a Seattle federal court, a Boeing spokesperson expressed gratitude for the decision, while LOT officials stated they are acknowledging the ruling and evaluating further available legal avenues.
While this case represents the first MAX-related lawsuit from a commercial airline to reach a trial verdict, Boeing continues to navigate extensive legal fallout.
The aerospace giant has faced numerous lawsuits filed by the families of crash victims, most of which have been settled privately out of court.
However, recent trials have resulted in significant multi-million dollar jury awards for grieving families, and the company recently agreed to pay $1.1 billion to the US Department of Justice to resolve criminal charges related to the original aircraft certification process.
