Cruise Ship Law

CHRISTOPHER ANTHONY LINER, et al. v. DRAVO BASIC MATERIALS COMPANY, et al.

Civil Action No. 00-1908 SECTION: "J"(2)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA
2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 16593
November 3, 2000, Decided
November 7, 2000, Filed; November 8, 2000, Entered

OVERVIEW: Two of the plaintiffs struck an unmarked submerged barge owned by defendants while they were using a 17-foot fiberglass recreational boat. Plaintiffs sued. Among the claims were loss of consortium and punitive damages. Defendants moved for partial summary judgment on these two claims calling into question the availability of loss of consortium damages and non-pecuniary damage awards under general maritime law. The motion for partial summary judgment was denied. Since the two plaintiffs were not seamen, and therefore not covered by United States Congressional statute, they could supplement their claims under general maritime law with applicable state law since the accident occurred in state territorial waters. State law permitted claims for loss of consortium. Under state law, punitive damages were available only in two specific instances, which did not apply in the instant case. However, turning the argument around, plaintiffs sought to supplement this claim by general maritime law. The court acknowledged that the general trend in the caselaw supported punitive damage claims under general maritime law when there were no overlapping federal statutes.
OUTCOME: Motion for partial summary judgment was denied. The two plaintiffs were not seamen; they could supplement their claims under general maritime law with applicable state law. State law permitted claims for loss of consortium. State law permitted punitive damages in only two circumstances, which were not present. However, caselaw supported the idea that general maritime law permitted punitive damages when there was no overlap with federal law.