New maintenance and cure case from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. It is unpublished, and therefore of limited precedential value, but does show the effect of a non-disclosure of pre-existing physical condition on a claimant’s later maintenance and cure claim. In this case, the employer obtained summary judgment and the Plaintiff’s claims dismissed because
General Maritime Law
New Marine Insurance Case from Fifth Circuit – St. Paul Fire & Marine Ins. Co. v. Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans
By Mark M. Murakami on
New marine insurance case from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. It relates to whether a “bumbershoot” insurance policy is a marine contract, giving the federal court admiralty jurisdiction. The trial court held it was and the Fifth Circuit affirmed in an unpublished decision. The insurer did prevail on its attempt to have New York…
New Admiralty Case from Fifth Circuit – Regan v. Starcraft Marine
By Mark M. Murakami on
New admiralty case from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. The case regards the negligence standard for maritime personal injury cases, as governed by federal maritime law.
The case is Regan v. Starcraft Marine, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 5192 and can be found here.
The opinion is unpublished, and therefore not precedential, but…
Closing the Chapter on the Coastwise Price-Fixing, Antitrust Charges against Major U.S. Shipper
By Mark M. Murakami on
Hat tip to a reader who sent two documents relating to the Horizon Coastwise Antitrust case. I posted about a parallel civil companion case here.
The Department of Justice Press Release is here. The Sentencing Memorandum is here.
Per the Press Release:
Horizon Lines LLC has agreed to plead guilty and to pay …
New Ninth Circuit Case on Death on the High Seas Act
By Mark M. Murakami on
Brand new case on the Death on the High Seas Act. My quick read shows a circuit split with 2nd Circuit on the applicability of the DOHSA in the band of water between 3 and 12 nautical miles from shore. Will review and comment later, but the case is Helman v. Alcoa Global Fasteners and…
New Admiralty Case from Fourth Circuit – Barna Conshipping, S.L. v. 2,000 Metric Tons
By Mark M. Murakami on
New admiralty case from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. It is unpublished, but it does have a basic primier on maritime contracts, admiralty jurisdiction and collateral estoppel. The case is Barna Conshipping, S.L. v. 2,000 Metric Tons, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 2751 and it can be found here.
Facts: the parties contracted to ship…
News Flash – SCOTUS To Hear Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Injury Case
By Mark M. Murakami on
The U.S. Supreme Court just agreed to hear the case of Pacific Operations Offshore, LLP v. Valladolid. Links to docket, briefs, and opinion below, courtesy of SCOTUSBLOG, here.
My earlier post on the Ninth Circuit's opinion is here. As to why SCOTUS took the case? As noted in my earlier post, there…
New Insurance Case from Second Circuit – Pactrans Air & Seas, Inc. v. New York Marine & Gen. Ins. Co.
By Mark M. Murakami on
New marine insurance case from Second Circuit Court of Appeals. It is unpublished and strictly based on New York insurance law, but it arose in the maritime context (cargo damage), hence this post.
The case is Pactrans Air & Seas, Inc. v. New York Marine & Gen. Ins. Co., 2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 14971 and…
Justice Alito’s Maritime Law Jurisprudence, Part Two
By Mark M. Murakami on
Before his appointment to the Supreme Court, Justice Alito has a judge on the Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He doesn't have many opinions relating to admiralty or maritime law from his time on the circuit court, but he does have a few.
Court of Appeals Opinions
Pennsylvania Tidewater Dock Co v. Director…
Justice Alito’s Maritime Law Jurisprudence
By Mark M. Murakami on
Justice Samuel Alito will be a Jurist-in-Residence at the University of Hawaii Law School this month. This is a longstanding program that brings Supreme Court justices, along with other senior federal judges, to the school for a week of lectures, symposia and other exchanges. I have been fortunate to have met or heard Justice Ginsburg…