A US judge has thrown out a civil action on behalf of a relative of a Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 passenger, scolding the Chicago law firm involved for what she described as an improper filing.
In a step toward a full-fledged lawsuit, Ribbeck Law Chartered asked Cook County Circuit Court last week to order Malaysia Airlines and Chicago-based Boeing Co to turn over any documents related to the plane's disappearance.
Judge Kathy Flanagan rejected the firm's request in her four-page ruling on Friday, saying the filing didn't conform to Illinois law, in part, because ordering evidence to be preserved can only happen when potential defendants are known.
The court papers were filed by the law firm on behalf of Januari Siregar, who the law firm says is a relative of Indonesian-born passenger Firman Chandra Siregar. The exact relationship wasn't clear from the documents.
A spokesman for Ribbeck Law said on Monday the ruling won't end the firm's push for a full-fledged lawsuit.
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"It really has no effect," Mervin Mateo said. "We will wait until the debris had been found. ... Then, we can file a lawsuit."
Dozens of countries continue searching for the Boeing 777 off the coast of Perth, which disappeared on March 8 with 239 people aboard.
