The House of Lords has agreed to give a ruling on whether airlines must compensate passengers who develop deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
The law lords have given a group of DVT victim's families until 28 July to appeal a 2003 Court of Appeal decision, which rejected the passengers' claims for compensation.
In July 2003, the Court of Appeal upheld a 2002 High Court ruling that the airlines were not liable, as their failure to warn passengers of the risks of suffering DVT did not constitute an accident under Article 17 of the Warsaw Convention, said a report.
Following that ruling, the claimants then petitioned the House of Lords directly for the right to appeal.
DVT, a circulatory condition that causes potentially fatal blood clots, has been linked to spending long periods in cramped conditions and with little movement.
