21.3 Admiralty & Maritime Law
Key Takeaways
- Admiralty and maritime is one of the twenty-five areas of law NALS lists under Part 4 Legal Knowledge, and it operates under a distinct body of federal law with its own vocabulary.
- Federal district courts have original jurisdiction over admiralty cases, but the saving to suitors clause preserves a plaintiff's right to pursue common law remedies in state court.
- A seaman injured in service of the vessel has three overlapping remedies: a Jones Act negligence claim against the employer, an unseaworthiness claim against the vessel owner, and maintenance and cure regardless of fault.
- Maintenance and cure is a no-fault obligation to provide living expenses and medical care until maximum medical improvement, and it is owed without regard to who caused the injury.
- The Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act covers maritime workers who are not seamen, so worker classification determines which entire remedial system applies.
21.3 Admiralty & Maritime Law
[!NOTE] NALS PP Exam Blueprint Focus: Admiralty and maritime appears in the Part 4 Legal Knowledge list of areas of law. It is the field most likely to feel entirely foreign to a paralegal who has never worked a maritime file, because it uses its own vocabulary, its own jurisdictional rules, and its own remedies that have no landside equivalent.
Jurisdiction
Article III of the Constitution extends the federal judicial power to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, and the federal statute grants district courts original jurisdiction over admiralty and maritime claims. Two tests define the reach:
| Claim type | Test |
|---|---|
| Maritime contract | Whether the subject matter of the contract is maritime in nature — charter parties, marine insurance, carriage of goods, towage, salvage agreements, seamen's employment |
| Maritime tort | Location on or over navigable waters, plus a connection test: potential disruptive effect on maritime commerce and a substantial relationship to traditional maritime activity |
A contract to build a ship is traditionally not maritime, while a contract to repair one is — a distinction that reliably surprises newcomers to the field.
The Saving to Suitors Clause
The jurisdictional grant is exclusive as to admiralty, but it saves to suitors all other remedies to which they are otherwise entitled. The practical effect:
| Proceeding | Forum |
|---|---|
| In rem action against the vessel itself | Federal admiralty court exclusively — only admiralty offers process against the vessel |
| In personam claim against a shipowner or employer | Federal admiralty, federal court on another jurisdictional basis, or state court applying maritime law |
A plaintiff choosing state court under the saving to suitors clause typically obtains a jury, which is ordinarily unavailable in an admiralty proceeding. That choice is one of the first strategic decisions in a maritime injury case, and Jones Act claims expressly carry a jury right.
The Seaman's Trilogy
Who is a seaman?
Seaman status requires that the worker's duties contribute to the function of the vessel or the accomplishment of its mission, and that the worker have a connection to a vessel in navigation that is substantial in both duration and nature. A rule of thumb applied by courts treats roughly 30 percent of work time in service of a vessel as the threshold for substantial duration.
Classification is the gateway question, because it selects the entire remedial system.
| Worker | System |
|---|---|
| Seaman | Jones Act, unseaworthiness, maintenance and cure |
| Longshore or harbor worker | Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act — a federal no-fault workers' compensation scheme |
| Land-based worker with no vessel connection | State workers' compensation |
The three remedies
| Remedy | Defendant | Basis | Standard |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jones Act negligence | The employer | Statutory negligence action | A featherweight causation standard — negligence playing any part, however slight, in producing the injury |
| Unseaworthiness | The vessel owner | General maritime law | Essentially strict liability: the vessel and its appurtenances must be reasonably fit for their intended purpose |
| Maintenance and cure | The employer | Ancient general maritime obligation | No fault at all — owed whenever a seaman falls ill or is injured in the service of the vessel |
Maintenance is a daily allowance for food and lodging ashore. Cure is medical treatment. Both continue until maximum medical improvement. Neither depends on who was at fault, and an employer who arbitrarily refuses maintenance and cure can be liable for compensatory and in some cases punitive damages. Comparative fault reduces Jones Act and unseaworthiness recovery but does not reduce maintenance and cure.
Other Injury and Death Statutes
| Statute | Coverage |
|---|---|
| Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act | Maritime employment on navigable waters and adjoining areas, for workers who are not seamen; no-fault scheduled benefits; a limited third-party action against the vessel |
| Death on the High Seas Act | Wrongful death occurring beyond a statutory distance from shore; pecuniary damages to specified beneficiaries |
| Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act | Workers on fixed platforms on the outer continental shelf |
| Public Vessels Act and Suits in Admiralty Act | Claims against the United States arising from government vessels |
Commercial Maritime Doctrines
Maritime liens
A maritime lien attaches to the vessel itself and travels with it into the hands of a purchaser, which is why a vessel purchase requires a lien search. Liens arise for seamen's wages, salvage, tort claims, general average contributions, and necessaries such as fuel, repairs, and supplies. Enforcement is by an in rem action in which the vessel is arrested and, if the claim is proved, sold by judicial sale that extinguishes prior liens. Priority ranking is a matter of maritime law rather than filing order, with seamen's wage claims ranking very high.
Salvage
A volunteer who successfully saves maritime property from peril earns a salvage award. The classic elements are a marine peril, voluntary service with no pre-existing duty, and success in whole or in part — the no cure, no pay principle. Awards consider the danger, the salvor's skill and risk, the value saved, and the promptness of the service. Pure salvage arises without contract; contract salvage operates under an agreed arrangement.
General average
When part of a cargo or the vessel is voluntarily sacrificed to save the common venture — jettisoning cargo in a storm, flooding a hold to fight a fire — all interests that benefited contribute proportionally to the loss. General average is one of the oldest principles in commercial law and remains in daily use, adjusted under the York-Antwerp Rules.
Limitation of liability
A vessel owner may petition to limit liability for claims arising from a casualty to the value of the vessel and its pending freight, provided the loss occurred without the owner's privity or knowledge. The petition must be filed within a statutory period after written notice of claim, and it concentrates all claims into a single federal proceeding called a concursus.
Carriage of goods and charters
| Instrument | Function |
|---|---|
| Bill of lading | Receipt for cargo, evidence of the contract of carriage, and a document of title |
| Carriage of Goods by Sea Act (COGSA) | Governs international carriage to and from United States ports; establishes carrier duties, defenses, a package limitation on liability, and a one-year suit deadline |
| Bareboat or demise charter | Charterer takes full possession and control and becomes owner pro hac vice |
| Time charter | Vessel hired for a period; the owner retains the crew and navigation |
| Voyage charter | Vessel hired for a specific voyage or cargo |
Laytime is the time allowed for loading and discharging; demurrage is the charge for exceeding it; dispatch is a credit for finishing early.
Collision and pollution
Collision liability is apportioned by comparative fault in proportion to each vessel's degree of fault. Vessel operation is governed by the navigation rules, and violation of a statutory rule can shift the burden of proof on causation. Oil pollution liability is governed by the Oil Pollution Act framework, which imposes strict liability on responsible parties for removal costs and damages, subject to limits and to financial responsibility requirements.
The Paralegal Workstream
| Task | Content |
|---|---|
| Status analysis | Gathering the facts that determine seaman versus longshore versus land-based status — vessel assignment records, time allocation, job duties |
| Vessel documentation | Certificates of documentation, ownership abstracts, lien searches, classification society records |
| Casualty records | Coast Guard reports, logbooks, voyage data, crew lists, weather and sea-state data |
| Maintenance and cure tracking | Daily rate, payment history, treating physician records, maximum medical improvement determination |
| Deadlines | The maritime limitations period for personal injury claims, the COGSA one-year suit deadline, and the limitation-of-liability petition window |
A deckhand assigned full time to a towboat slips on an unrepaired deck plate and is injured. The employer argues the deckhand's own carelessness caused the fall. What is the employer's obligation to pay living expenses and medical care?
A cargo owner wants to sue the vessel itself to enforce a maritime lien for damaged cargo, arresting the ship when it next calls at a United States port. Where must that action be brought?
During a storm, a ship's master orders part of the deck cargo jettisoned to keep the vessel afloat, saving the ship and the remaining cargo. How is the loss allocated?