Manitoba prof wins baggage battle with airline

An assistant professor at the University of Manitoba has won another round in his legal battle against airline baggage rules.

Gabor Lukacs, 29, an assistant professor of mathematics at the University of Manitoba, challenged an Air Canada policy that it wasn't liable for valuables such as money and jewelry in checked baggage on certain itineraries.

The Canadian Transportation Agency released a decision Tuesday declaring Air Canada's international baggage liability rule unreasonable, and ordered that Air Canada replace it within 10 days.

The agency found it was unreasonable for Air Canada to have a blanket exclusion of liability.

Air Canada must now change its policy to permit exclusion of liability only in the exceptional circumstances described by an international treaty called the Montreal Convention, which sets uniform rules for international carriage of passengers, baggage and cargo.

Last year, Lukacs won a legal fight against WestJet after complaining that its $250 limit for luggage compensation was too low.

The agency ordered the cap raised to $1,800.