Where A Husband And Wife Sued A Cruise Line, Its Fed. R. Civ. P. 56 Partial Summary Judgment Motion Was Granted Because The Characteristics Of The Parties' Tickets Were Such That Terms And Conditions Were Conspicuous, They Were On Notice That A Limitation
MARIANNE PAUL AND ROBERT PAUL, Plaintiffs, v. HOLLAND AMERICA LINE, INC., et al., Defendants.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81527
November 6, 2006, Decided
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiffs, a husband and wife, sued defendant cruise line, alleging negligence, negligent infliction of emotional distress, and loss of consortium, after the wife required heart surgery following a cruise. They alleged that her condition was caused by an echovirus that she contracted on-board. The cruise line sought partial summary judgment under Fed. R. Civ. P. 56.
OVERVIEW: The cruise line requested an order that recovery be limited to 46,666 Special Drawing Rights (SDR) pursuant to the Athens Convention, and that the husband's loss of consortium claim be dismissed. The federal district court granted the motion, finding that the physical characteristics of plaintiffs' ticket were such that the terms and conditions were sufficiently conspicuous to plaintiffs. Further, the provision at issue identified the relevant limitation of 46,666 SDRs, meaning that plaintiffs needed only visit the International Monetary Fund website to view the current value of an SDR in American dollars. Moreover, the language that was provided was sufficient to have put them on notice of the liability limitation. Furthermore, there was nothing confusing about the contract's reference to the Athens Convention as well as to the laws of the U.S. Although neither the Convention nor the 1976 Protocol had been ratified by the U.S., so they carried no force of law, the limitation provision had force because it was properly incorporated into the contract. Finally, loss of consortium claims were not cognizable in cases that were governed by maritime law.
OUTCOME: The district court granted the cruise line's motion for partial summary judgment.
