lntemational law in general — Relation to municipal law — Municipal principles of statutory interpretation — Whether applicable to statute incorporating intemational convention into municipal law — Admissibility of travaux préparatoires as interpretative aid — Confirmation of practice by Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties — Whether principles of interpretation laid down therein are binding on English courts — Warsaw Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to International Carriage by Air, 1929, as amended by the Hague Protocol, 1955 — Carriage by Air Act 1961 — Whether permissible to have recourse to minutes of drafting committees of Hague Protocol in interpreting word “damage” contained therei — The law of England
Treaties — Interpretation of — Principles and rules of interpretation — Municipal law giving effect to treaty — Warsaw Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to International Carriage by Air, 1929, as amended by the Hague Protocol, 1955 — Carriage by Air Act 1961 — Article 26(2) of the Convention — Requirement that carrier be notified within seven days of “damage” to baggage — Whether time limit applicable in the event of partial loss of contents of baggage — Meaning of “damage” — Municipal principles of statutory interpretation — Purposive interpretation — Aim of uniformity in application of international agreement representing a consensus of States with diverse legal systems — Achievement of commercial purpose and harmonization of municipal laws of State parties — Bilingual text — French language version to prevail over English — Correct mode of interpreting foreign language text — Use of dictionaries, interpreters and legal experts — Admissibility of commentaries and foreign case law as interpretative aids — Whether practice of other national and international courts in relation to reliance on travaux préparatoires should be followed — Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, 1969 — Conditions under which discretion to use travaux préparatoires should be exercised — The law of England
