Justia U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Plaintiff, a citizen of the Philippines, brought suit against defendants for damages arising from severe injuries he sustained aboard the M/V Asian Spirit in the Chesapeake Bay near Baltimore. Plaintiff's complaint alleged multiple clams against defendants, including unseaworthiness, maintenance and cure, breach of contract, violation of the Seaman's Wage Act, 46 U.S.C. 10313(i), and negligence under general maritime law and the Jones Act, 46 U.S.C. 30104. The court affirmed the district court's judgment that the Arbitration Clause at issue was enforceable and that plaintiff must arbitrate his claims against defendants in the Philippines. Nevertheless, the court vacated the dismissal of the case and remanded for reinstatement thereof, for assessment of the injunction request, for entry of a stay pending arbitration to ensure that plaintiff would have an opportunity at the award-enforcement stage for judicial review of his public policy defense based on the prospective waiver doctrine, and for such other and further proceedings. View "Aggarao, Jr. v. Mol Ship Mgmt. Co." on Justia Law

This appeal arose out of a case involving an allision, collision between a moving vessel and a stationary object, between a USACE vessel and a private yacht, the Marquessa, owned and operated by appellants. Appellants appealed from the district court's award of damages in their favor, arguing that it was infirm in various respects. The court held that the district court did not err in applying the doctrine of constructive total loss; the district court reasonably credited testimony establishing a market value for the Marquessa; there was an insufficient basis in the record for determining the fact or extent of the alleged damage to the antennas and computers; and the district court did not err in amending its initial judgment to account for appellants' stipulation. Accordingly, the judgment of the district court was affirmed. View "F.C. Wheat Maritime Corp. v. United States" on Justia Law

This case involved the Carmack Amendment to the Interstate Commerce Act, 49 U.S.C. 14706, which set up a framework for the timely filing of claims against carriers for damaged cargo. In this case, it was undisputed that neither the shipper nor the shipping broker filed either a claim or a lawsuit within the prescribed time limitations. Therefore, were the court to create some exception to the statutorily authorized, contractually mandated requirements of prompt filing, the court would blow a hole in the balance struck by the Carmack Amendment and undermine Congress's intent to protect carriers against stale claims. Therefore, the court reversed the judgment of the district court in favor of the shipping broker and remanded with instructions to dismiss the lawsuit.