COMPLAINT OF SISSON, 86 C 1991.

• Decision Date: 24 September 1987
• Docket Number: No. 86 C 1991.,86 C 1991.
• Citation: 663 F. Supp. 858,1988 AMC 1727
• Parties: In the Matter of the Complaint of Everett A. SISSON, as Owner of the Motor Yacht THE ULTORIAN for Exoneration From or Limitation of Liability.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of Illinois

663 F. Supp. 858

1988 AMC 1727

In the Matter of the Complaint of Everett A. SISSON, as Owner of the Motor Yacht THE ULTORIAN for Exoneration From or Limitation of Liability.

No. 86 C 1991.

United States District Court, N.D. Illinois, E.D.

June 29, 1987.

Reconsideration Denied September 24, 1987.^*

Warren J. Marwedel, Dennis Minichello, Tribler & Marwedel, P.C., Chicago, Ill., for plaintiff.

Bernard Leon Chase, Michael Snyder, Snyder & Gerard, Jeff Harris, Foran, Wiss & Schultz, John F. Horvath, Conklin & Adler, Ltd., Chicago, Ill., for claimants.

ORDER

BUA, District Judge.

This order concerns claimants' motion to dismiss plaintiff's complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. For the reasons stated herein, claimants' motion to dismiss is granted.

I. FACTS

On September 24, 1985, plaintiff's 56-foot pleasure yacht, The Ultorian, was docked at Washington Park Marina in Michigan City, Indiana. A fire erupted on The Ultorian completely destroying the vessel and causing extensive damage to the marina and several neighboring boats. According to allegations made by plaintiff in a related suit against the manufacturer of The Ultorian, the fire was caused by an allegedly defective washer/dryer on board the vessel. The net value of The Ultorian after the casualty was $800. Extensive damage to the marina and vessels in the vicinity of The Ultorian resulted from the fire. The claimant owners of the vessels and marina estimate damages to exceed $275,000.

II. DISCUSSION

Plaintiff instituted this action for injunctive and declaratory relief seeking to limit his liability to claimants for damages arising out of the September 24 incident. Plaintiff asserts jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1333 and contends that the Limitation of Liability Act, 46 U.S.C. § 183¹ limits his potential liability to $800, the salvage value of The Ultorian. Claimants motion to dismiss plaintiff's action on two grounds. First, claimants assert that admiralty and maritime jurisdiction under § 1333 does not exist in the present case. Second, claimants argue that the Limitation of Liability Act does not apply to pleasure craft. Because this court finds subject matter jurisdiction is lacking, claimants' second argument is not addressed below.

As the purpose of plaintiff's action is to limit possible tort liability, this court must analyze admiralty jurisdiction principles applicable to tort cases. Traditionally, federal admiralty jurisdiction in tort cases existed whenever the actionable wrong occurred on a navigable waterway. Victory Carriers, Inc. v. Law, 404 U.S. 202, 205, 92 S.Ct. 418, 421, 30 L.Ed.2d 383 (1971); The Plymouth, 3 Wall. 20, 35-36, 18 L.Ed. 125 (1866). Subsequent decisions of the Supreme Court, however, have added a second prerequisite. Foremost Ins. Co. v. Richardson, 457 U.S. 668, 102 S.Ct. 2654, 73 L.Ed.2d 300 (1982); Executive Jet Aviation v. City of Cleveland, 409 U.S. 249, 93 S.Ct. 493, 34 L.Ed.2d 454 (1972). To establish admiralty jurisdiction in a tort case today, not only must the wrong occur on navigable waters, but the tort must bear a "significant relationship to traditional maritime activity." Foremost, 457 U.S. at 674-75, 102 S.Ct. at 2658; Executive Jet, 409 U.S. at 268, 93 S.Ct. at 504.

In Executive Jet, the Supreme Court addressed whether admiralty jurisdiction existed over tort claims arising from the crash of a small commercial passenger jet into Lake Erie. Executive Jet, 409 U.S. at 250, 93 S.Ct. at 495. The cause of the crash was assigned to the ingestion of birds in the plane's engines while the jet was still over the runway. Id. Plaintiffs contended that although the alleged negligent conduct of the traffic controllers in failing to warn of the birds occurred on land, the fact the jet was damaged upon impact with the navigable waters of Lake Erie gave rise to admiralty jurisdiction. Id. at 266-67, 93 S.Ct. at 503-04. Rejecting the traditional locality rule as the sole test for determining admiralty jurisdiction, the Court ruled § 1333 jurisdiction existed only when the actionable conduct "bears a significant relationship to traditional maritime activity." Id. at 268, 93 S.Ct. at 504. Because the wrong complained of by plaintiffs had no connection with "traditional forms of maritime commerce or navigation," the Court concluded admiralty jurisdiction did not exist and ordered plaintiffs' actions dismissed. Id. at 272, 93 S.Ct. at 506.

In Foremost Ins. Co. v. Richardson, the Supreme Court specifically rejected the contention that admiralty jurisdiction depended on whether the actionable conduct arises in the context of some commercial maritime activity. Foremost, 457 U.S. at 674-76, 102 S.Ct. at 2658-59. In that case, the collision of two small pleasure craft on navigable waters resulted in the death of an occupant. Id. at 669, 102 S.Ct. at 2655. The decedent's wife instituted a tort action for damages against the operator of the other boat in federal district court asserting admiralty jurisdiction. Id. Addressing the assertion that admiralty jurisdiction was limited to situations involving some aspect of commercial maritime activity, the Court explained the federal interest in protecting maritime commerce could not be adequately served if admiralty jurisdiction extended only to those actually engaged in commercial maritime activity. Id. at 674-75, 102 S.Ct. at 2658. According to the Court, the federal interest could be fully protected "only if all operators of vessels on navigable waters are subject to uniform rules of conduct. The failure to recognize the breadth of this federal interest ignores the potential effect of noncommercial activity on maritime commerce." Id. at 675, 102 S.Ct. at 2658. Thus, the fact noncommercial vessels were involved in the activity leading to the actionable conduct did not preclude the existence of a significant relationship to traditional maritime activity. Id. at 676, 102 S.Ct. at 2659. Centering on the fact that the alleged wrong involved the negligent navigation of a vessel on navigable waters, the Court concluded that the tortious conduct had a sufficient nexus to traditional maritime activity to sustain admiralty jurisdiction. Id at 674, 102 S.Ct. at 2658.

Lower courts applying the two-part Executive Jet/Foremost test in tort cases involving pleasure craft focus on the existence of a navigational error to find admiralty jurisdiction. See Hogan v. Overman, 767 F.2d 1093 (4th Cir.1985) (allegation that swimmer was injured due to alleged navigational error sufficient to show substantial relationship with traditional maritime activity); Souther v. Thompson, 754 F.2d 151 (4th Cir.1985) (no admiralty jurisdiction exists where controversy involving pleasure boats does not arise out of alleged navigational error); Oliver by Oliver v. Hardesty, 745 F.2d 317 (4th Cir.1984) (proper emphasis for ascertaining admiralty jurisdiction in cases involving pleasure boats is on the navigation of such vessels); Medina v. Perez, 733 F.2d 170 (1st Cir.1984) (admiralty jurisdiction found where alleged negligent navigation of pleasure vessel resulted in injury to swimmer); Smith v. Knowles, 642 F.Supp. 1137 (D.Md.1986) (action against owner and operator of small motorboat arising when decedent jumped overboard to urinate and drowned dismissed for lack of admiralty jurisdiction as misjudgment of water's depth was not a navigational error nor a negligent act which might have affected traditional maritime activity). Analyzing the Supreme Court's statements in Foremost and Executive Jet emphasizing the need for uniform rules governing navigation of vessels on navigable waters, these lower courts concluded that some type of navigational error must be alleged to find a significant relationship with traditional maritime activity when pleasure craft are involved. Hogan v. Overman, 767 F.2d at 1094; Souther v. Thompson, 754 F.2d at 153; Oliver by Oliver v. Hardesty, 745 F.2d at 319; Medina v. Perez, 733 F.2d at 171; Smith v. Knowles, 642 F.Supp. at 1139-40. The rationale for focusing on an alleged navigational error stems from the Supreme Court's reasoning in Foremost that although ownership and operation of pleasure boats cannot be viewed as a traditional maritime activity, extension of admiralty jurisdiction is warranted where operation of pleasure craft might interfere with commercial vessels. Smith v. Knowles, 642 F.Supp. at 1139, citing Foremost, 457 U.S. at 675, 102 S.Ct. at 2658. Thus, as one court observed, the clear import of the Foremost decision is that admiralty jurisdiction exists only when the wrongful conduct presents a significant risk of damaging or delaying commercial vessels. Smith v. Knowles, 642 F.Supp. at 1139.

Recently, certain courts addressing product liability claims of laborers installing asbestos material in commercial vessels have developed a four-factor test for determining whether the alleged wrong bears a significant relationship to traditional maritime activity. See e.g., Oman v. Johns-Manville Corp., 764 F.2d 224, 230 (4th Cir.1985); Woessner v. Johns-Manville Sales Corp., 757 F.2d 634, 639-41 (5th Cir. 1985), reaffirming Kelly v. Smith, 485 F.2d 520, 525 (5th Cir.1973). These four factors include: (1) functions and roles of the parties; (2) types of vehicles and instrumentalities involved; (3) causation and type of injury; and (4) traditional concepts of the role of admiralty law. Id. Courts analyzing the tort claims of shipyard employees under this four-part test universally determined that the wrong alleged did not bear a substantial relationship to traditional maritime activity. Oman v. Johns-Manville Corp., 764 F.2d 224, 230 (4th Cir. 1985); Woessner v. Johns-Manville Corp., 757 F.2d 634, 639-41 (5th Cir.1985); Harville v. Johns-Manville Prod. Corp., 731 F.2d 775, 787 (11th Cir.1984); Myhran v. Johns-Manville Corp., 741 F.2d 1119, 1121 (9th Cir.1984). Other circuits addressing similar asbestosis claims under the assertion of admiralty jurisdiction came...