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Admiralty and Maritime Law

Admiralty law or maritime law (the terms are used interchangeably) refers to the law that covers navigation and shipping. U.S. admiralty law dates back to colonial times. The colonies, dependent on navigation and shipping for survival, established admiralty courts similar to those that existed in Britain. Article III, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution and the Judiciary Act of 1789 gave the federal district courts jurisdiction over admiralty issues.

Admiralty law covers an extraordinarily wide range of issues including commercial use of bodies of water; transport and shipping via oceans, rivers, and lakes; accidents, including the injury of seaman, cargo and vessels; issues concerning docks, piers, and wharves; and recreational boating. Historically, many admiralty law cases involved goods damaged in shipping. Admiralty law has changed with changes in society. Now, goods are packed in containers for safekeeping during shipping. As the economy has become global, the American merchant fleet has been reduced. Developments in technology have resulted in increasingly sophisticated navigation systems that result in fewer accidents.

A ship flying the American flag is subject to the admiralty laws of the United States. Debate has recently erupted concerning cruise ships that serve American customers but are registered in other countries. These ships are not subject to American admiralty law even when in American ports and waters. There is increased concern that such ships may be trying to evade the jurisdiction of American courts, particularly with regard to environmental issues.

Admiralty law is a highly specialized are of law that is separate from, though similar to, civil law. The jurisdiction of the federal courts in admiralty cases was expanded by the Jones Act of 1936, which allows merchant seaman injured on American vessels to bring claims under federal jurisdiction. Many of the issues relevant to admiralty today are the same issues arising in civil litigation-environmental litigation, personal injury litigation, insurance coverage, and subrogation issues.


Reproduced from The Official Guide to Legal Specialties with permission. (c) 2000 Thomson Reuters/West. For additional information on this publication please visit  http://west.thomson.com/products/law-students. Copyright granted via e-mail by Donna Gies, September 16, 2008.