There is something about the sea that makes humans poetic.
As a corollary, there is something about maritime cases that make judges very eloquent. Case in chief – consider this closing from Boudreaux v. Transocean Deepwater, Inc., Maintenance and Cure decision of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals:
We are offered no reason to depart
Earlier this month, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals shot down the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society on a piracy theory (my post here). This week, Greenpeace is in the hotseat. This case arises from a preliminary injunction obtained by Shell Oil Company against Greenpeace for protest activities in the Arctic. The case is Shell
(I'm not sure who captured and posted the above video — it wasn't me — but to whomever did so, thank you.)Earlier this week, I spoke at the University of Hawaii Law School on a panel about "The PLDC and Property Rights in Hawaii." PLDC refers to the Public Land Development Corporation, a
"You don't need a peg leg or an eye patch."
Author note: I challenge any of my intrepid readers to find as odd a statement in any opinion.
Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Kozinski at his finest, for sure. Today, the Ninth Circuit ruled on an Alien Tort Statute brought by a permitted whale hunter against
Fane Lozman, the successful petitioner-owner of the not-a-vessel-house at issue in Lozman v. City of Riviera Beach, No. 11-626 (Jan. 15, 2013) was interviewed recently on the radio show "The Justice Hour with Lisa Macci." In Lozman, the Court held that Lozman's houseboat is not a "vessel" under 1 U.S.C.
Whew – we have appeared to have dodged that one.
As a smart secret agent used to say:
The appeals courts have been busy with admiralty decisions, so this busy blogger will summarize these cases and provide links to the source opinions for your further review:
Vitol v. Primerose Shipping Co., Ltd., opinion here. Great admiralty civil procedure case from Fourth Circuit. Prevailing party in a English Commercial Court proceeding
Because I am primarily a land use attorney, with an affinity to the sea, the case of Lozman v. Riviera Beach allows me to have my cake, and eat it too.
The Blogosphere is humming about the decision:
Gideon Kanner's post captures the essence of the opinion, then adds his usual, customary insights:
The interesting part
This just in: in an 7-2 opinion authored by Justice Breyer, the U.S. Supreme Court held in Lozman v. City of Riviera Beach, No. 11-626, that a houseboat is not a “vessel” under 1 U.S.C. § 3 (a “watercraft or other artificial contrivance used, or capable of being used, as a means of transportation on