Legal battle lines drawn in Asiana plane crash
New York firm - which handled September 11 claims - to file lawsuits over Chinese victims
Families of the three passengers who died when an Asiana Airlines jet crashed in San Francisco three weeks ago have retained prominent New York law firm Kreindler & Kreindler to represent them as legal manoeuvring over liability and damages heats up.
The law firm, which specialises in aviation law, made a name for itself representing victims in catastrophic air disasters, including the September 11, 2001, attacks.
Partner Jim Kreindler said he would handle the cases of the three Chinese teenagers who died, as well as 12 injury cases involving US, Chinese and Korean residents. He intends to file lawsuits in coming weeks.
Dozens were seriously injured in the crash of Asiana flight 214, which had 307 people aboard when it hit a seawall in front of the runway, lost its tail and caught fire after skidding to a halt.
Kreindler's clients include the family of Ye Mengyuan , who survived the crash but died after being run over by a fire truck. Kreindler sent a letter to the San Francisco Fire Department on Wednesday, requesting documents, videotapes, photos and other evidence related to the department's response to the crash.
