Fishing Vessel Master's Violates Primary Duty
In Northern Queen, Inc. v. Kinnear, 2002 WL 1799711 (9th Cir. August 7, 2002), the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that Blake Kinnear, master (and 22 percent owner) of the F/V LIN J, violated the primary duty rule when the vessel sank in icy waters of the Bering Sea in March 1999, relieving the vessel's owner, Northern Queen, Inc.--77 percent owned by his wife and one percent owned by his minor daughter--of liability for his death. Northern Queen initiated the suit by filing a claim under the Limitation of Liability Act, seeking to limit the vessel owner's liability to the post-casualty value of the vessel together with her pending freight.
Legal Beat: Captains Not Able to Recover Under Jones Act
Maritime law traditionally recognized only two claims by a seaman injured in the course of his employment. One claim was for maintenance and cure along with wages until the end of the voyage, and the other claim was damages for injuries sustained due to the unseaworthiness of the ship. Eventually, the Jones Act was passed creating an additional right of action for seaman under the theory of negligence. In contrast to the rights afforded to seamen, vessel owners have also been provided with certain defenses and immunities. One such defense is the primary duty doctrine. Under the primary duty doctrine, a Jones Act seaman may not recover from a vessel owner for injuries caused by the seaman's own failure to perform a duty imposed on him by his employment.
