Claim Letter To Vessel Owner Started Six Month Period To File Limitation Action
PARADISE DIVERS, INC., as Owner of the 30' Island hopper M/VParadise Diver IV bearing hull identification number D929003, her engines, tackle, appurtenances, etc., Petitioner, in a cause for exoneration from limitation of liability, Plaintiff-Appellant, versus KEVIN R. UPMAL, Claimant-Appellee.
No. 04-12037
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
402 F.3d 1087; 2005 U.S. App. LEXIS 3938; 18 Fla. L. WeeklyFed. C 308
March 9, 2005, Decided
March 9, 2005, Filed
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Appellee claimant filed an action against appellant vessel owner for Jones Act negligence, unseaworthiness, and maintenance and cure. The owner filed a limitation of liability action under 46 U.S.C.S. app. § 185. The claimant moved the district court to dismiss the action as untimely. The United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida dismissed the limitation action as untimely and the vessel owner appealed.
OVERVIEW: The sole issue in this admiralty appeal was whether correspondence from the claimant to the vessel owner in March and May of 2002 was sufficient written notice of a claim, under 46 U.S.C.S. app. § 185, to begin the running of the six-month limitation period during which the vessel owner had to file an action for limitation of liability. The instant court found that the letters from the claimant to the vessel owner, which referenced claims under the Jones Act and for unseaworthiness and maintenance and cure worth tens of thousands of dollars, were sufficient to begin the running of the limitation period. The court reasoned that the May 30, 2002, letter advised the vessel owner of a claim subject to limitation, because the claimant asserted a claim for Jones Act negligence, unseaworthiness, and maintenance and cure, and stated his intent to file a complaint. Additionally, the court reasoned that the May 2002 letter referenced the liability of the vessel owner in relation to the accident. Finally, the court found that the May 30, 2002, letter was unambiguous.
OUTCOME: The judgment was affirmed.
