The U.S. Supreme Court has resolved split circuit court decision sin the personal injury case of Dutra Group v. Batterton, ruling that an injured Jones Act seaman cannot recover punitive damages on a common-law maritime claim of unseaworthiness. In a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court rejected deckhand Christopher Batterton's bid to lodge a claim for punitive damages in a lawsuit … [Read more...]
Why China Matters – U.S. Could Loose Offshore Drilling Rights To EEZ
By Peter Coy (Bloomberg) The U.S. and other coastal nations could lose millions of square nautical miles of ocean that are now in their exclusive economic zones. The loss would be an indirect result of an arbitration panel’s ruling on China’s dispute with the Philippines in the South China Sea. Largely overlooked in the tribunal’s July 12 decision was a strict … [Read more...]
K-Line Executive Sentenced to 18-Months in U.S. Prison
Hiroshige Tanioka, an executive of Japanese shipping company Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd, aka K-Line, pleaded guilty last week and was sentenced to 18 months in a U.S. prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to fix prices, allocate customers and rig bids of international ocean shipping services for roll-on, roll-off cargo, such as cars and trucks, to and from the United States … [Read more...]
Bulk Carrier Owner and Master Fined for Dumping Trash Off Australia
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has prosecuted China Earth Shipping Incorporated, the owners of Panama flagged bulk carrier Xin Tai Hai and its master after the ship's crew tossed bags of garbage overboard near Gladstone in June last year. The shipowner was fined $20,000 and the ship's master was fined $6000 in the Townsville Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, … [Read more...]
Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty for Sewol Captain
By Ju-min Park GWANGJU, South Korea, Oct 27 (Reuters) - South Korean prosecutors on Monday sought the death penalty for the captain of a ferry that capsized in April, leaving 304 people, most of them school children, dead or missing, in a trial of 15 crew who abandoned ship before it sank. Lee Joon-seok, 68, charged with homicide, should be sentenced to death for failing … [Read more...]