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A Chicago jury has awarded $29 million to the family of Michael Ryan, an Irish-born United Nations employee who died in the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 MAX crash, according to court documents published on Wednesday.
The civil case was filed against Boeing by Ryan’s widow, Naoise Connolly Ryan, over the death of her husband, who was among 157 people killed when Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa.
“The jury finds the total amount of damages suffered by Plaintiff is $29 million,” a court entry from the US District Court in Chicago stated.
Ryan, 39, was an engineer with the United Nations World Food Programme and had contributed to humanitarian efforts in several countries. He worked during the Ebola crisis in Liberia and supported Rohingya refugees, while a UN memorial page also recognised his work in Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Ethiopia.
The verdict is among the final civil cases linked to the two Boeing 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019, which together killed 346 people. Most claims filed by victims’ families have been resolved through out-of-court settlements, but Ryan was among a group of plaintiffs who chose to continue their cases through trial.
Steven Marks, managing partner at law firm Podhurst Orseck, which represented Ryan’s family, said the ruling was an important step toward accountability.
“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,” Marks said.
“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.”
Boeing has previously apologised to families of those killed and acknowledged that defects involving the aircraft’s anti-stall software contributed to both crashes.
“We are deeply sorry to all who lost loved ones on Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302,” a Boeing spokesperson said.
The company added that while it had resolved nearly all claims through settlements, families had the right to pursue their cases in court.
Boeing said in a July 28 securities filing that fewer than five lawsuits from families of MAX crash victims remained pending. The company is also appealing a March 2026 US ruling that partially granted class-action status to investors who accused Boeing of misleading them about the aircraft’s safety after the first crash.
In May, another Chicago jury awarded $49.5 million to the family of Samya Stumo, a 24-year-old American who was also killed in the Ethiopian Airlines crash.
