C-581/10 and C-629/10 · 2012 · UK 261 AND EC 261
Nelson v Deutsche Lufthansa; TUI Travel and Others v Civil Aviation Authority
The Grand Chamber confirmed Sturgeon in 2012 and rejected every challenge to it. Articles 5 to 7 mean that passengers delayed three hours or more at the final destination are entitled to the Art. 7 sums. The Court held that loss of time is an inconvenience outside the Montreal Convention, so the fixed compensation stands.
REVIEWED AGAINST RULE SET V6 AND THE CITED PRIMARY SOURCES · UPDATED 7 AUGUST 2026
- COURT
- Court of Justice of the European Union (Grand Chamber)
- CASE NUMBER
- C-581/10 and C-629/10
- JUDGMENT
- 23 October 2012
- CITATION
- ECLI:EU:C:2012:657
What the case was about
Airlines and the UK Civil Aviation Authority asked the Court to revisit Sturgeon, arguing that reading compensation into delay went beyond the text of Regulation 261/2004.
The challenges ran on three grounds: compatibility with the Montreal Convention, legal certainty, and proportionality.
What it changed
- The three hour rule moved from a chamber judgment to a Grand Chamber ruling, which ended the argument that Sturgeon was an outlier.
- Airlines lost the Montreal Convention defence to the fixed sums: standardised compensation for lost time sits outside the Convention's damage regime.
- Rejection letters that describe the three hour rule as unsettled law are describing the position before October 2012.
SOURCES
- Joined Cases C-581/10 and C-629/10 Nelson v Deutsche Lufthansa and TUI Travel v CAA, judgment of 23 October 2012 (Grand Chamber, ECLI:EU:C:2012:657) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
- Joined Cases C-402/07 and C-432/07 Sturgeon v Condor, judgment of 19 November 2009 (ECLI:EU:C:2009:716) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026