Public and Private Law Ramifications for Cruise Ships

Mr. And Mrs. Lowell were passengers on one of Diversified Worldwide Industries. Known as DWI throughout this document. DWI ship "The Minnow" (referred to as Minnow throughout this document) flies under the Liberia flag, and in every passenger contract and tick, it clearly states that all claims by passengers or employees must be litigated in and under the law of the country whose flag the ship flies under. In this case Liberia. The Minnow ports in Miami and makes stops in Nassau, Key West and Grand Cayman.

The incident report reads that two of DWI employees robbed Mr. And Mrs. Lowell before the Grand Cayman stop. There was a struggle between Mr. Lowell and the employee's and as a result Mr. Lowell suffered a fatal heart attack. The employee's locked Mrs. Lowell in the cabin restroom and escaped at the Grand Cayman port. Mrs. Lowell was discovered several hours after leaving the Grand Cayman port and was able to identify the two employees' via a photo lineup.

Upon arriving in Miami, Mrs. Lowell hired an attorney who faxed a letter to SWI threatening to sue them for negligent supervision, training and hiring of employees: breach of contract; infliction of emotional distress; assault; battery; theft; and wrongful death unless DWI tendered the sum of $10 million dollars within 10 business days.

Under Liberian law, a wife is the property of the husband and has no standing to sue or claim damages for his injuries, and further that any property within possession of Husband and Wife is deemed to be the sole property of the husband.

In this paper, we will discuss the public and private law ramifications for DWI. We will also discuss how it would be if this happened on the U.S. mainland. I have also addressed what DWI should do for Mrs. Lowell and made recommendations in terms of developing policies for future criminal incidents.

Method

In order to come to the conclusions I have, I have read over the incident report, researched maritime law, along with Liberian law. I have obtained my research though the Internet. Using legal and government sources.

Public and Private Law, the Flag of Convenience and Maritime Law

Looking at the case for Mrs. Lowell. The Minnow was sailing between U.S. waters and international waters. There was an undetermined amount of time from the time she was robbed and assaulted from she was discovered locked in the cabin restroom. Under Admiralty Law, "the court could decide to apply Liberian Maritime Law or to refuse to exercise jurisdiction." (Legal Database, 2006).

"In general international maritime law is consistent among all countries" (Legal Database, 2006) "The International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards governing the operation of cruise vessels worldwide." (ICCL, 2006) International Maritime Organization (IMO) standards governing the operation of cruise vessels worldwide. Furthermore, "In 1999, the member lines of the ICCL adopted a zero tolerance industry standard for crimes committed on board. In the rare instance crimes occur on board, cruise lines report and cooperate with the appropriate law enforcement authorities." (ICCL, 2006)

The Cruise Industry Zero Tolerance Policy for Crimes Committed Onboard Ships policy indicates that any vessel that calls on a U.S. Port, or involved with U.S. citizens, would be forwarded to the appropriate law enforcement authority, which includes the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (ICCL, 2006) In incident report I reviewed of Mrs. Lowell, the ship left an U.S. port and she is an U.S. citizen. The ICCL also states that, "If crimes do occur, the appropriate law enforcement authorities will be called in to investigate and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law. We will continue to cooperate with the authorities to ensure that perpetrators of crime are brought to justice." (ICCL, 2006) It is further stated in the Workplace code of Conduct issued by the ICCL that The U.S. Coast Guard has jurisdiction for inspection and enforcement of international safety and security standards for all ships calling at U.S. ports. (ICCL, 2006) This would apply to the Minnow.

It is important to determine where the contract agreement took place. The courts look favorably to the county in which the contract between the passenger and cruise line was agreed upon. "To determine whether the law of the United States applies to a foreign flag vessel, the courts look to the general law applicable to contracts. If the contract is entered into in the United States, the voyage commences in the United States, and a citizen of the United States is involved, the law of the United States generally applies, even if the flag of the vessel is foreign." (Attorney Pages, 2006)

Private law in international transactions, allows for businesses to rely on party autonomy such as the ICCL code of ethics and standards that has been adapted world wide for all cruise lines. In our case, Private law would apply as to our code of ethics and following the ICCL code which allows for a ship leaving a U.S. port to be governed by U.S. law. Public law would be upheld with such articles as the U.S. constitution, or in our case the Liberia, the Constitution Republic of Liberia.

If this incident would have happened on U.S. mainland, we would have a clear picture of what court and how to handle this case. If Mrs. Lowell gets any type of negative media attention, this could hurt the reputation of our company.

Some cruise lines will play the waiting game with passengers with respect to claims to injury. If Mrs. Lowell lawsuit is not filed within one year, she will lose her claim to sue. (Linda, 2005, Cruise Law) We could compile the papers to the point that her attorney would have to wait till someone is brought to justice in a court a law. But would this be ethical?

Recommendations

The first thing we need to do is to ensure Mrs. Lowell that DWI will cooperate with all law enforcement to ensure that she receives justice for her loss. We will not only cooperate but also ensure this type of behavior doesn't happen again though training and screen of future and current employee's. In addition we can give our passengers a "choice-of-law" provision which may be enforced by the U. S. courts." (Attorney Pages, 2006) This will make passengers comfortable knowing they can have and be assured their rights are enforced as they are in their home country. Furthermore, I would offer a settlement to Mrs. Lowell, with stipulations of disclosure. The quicker DWI can get this put behind them with the least amount press, the better DWI business would be.

References

Legal Database, "Admiralty Law Overview", [Electronic Version] retrieved on January 10, 2006 from http://www.legal-database.com/admiralty-law-overview.htm

ICCL, International Council of Cruise Lines, "Cruise Industry Standards", "Safety Standards", [Electronic Version] retrieved on January 10, 2006 from http://www.iccl.org/policies/safety.cfm

Attorney Pages, "What law applies to cruise line injuries", [Electronic Version] retrieved on January 10, 2006 from http:
//injury.freeadvice.com/injury_help.php/106_2_254.htm

Linda, 2005 Cruise Law, "Interview With James Walker", [Electronic Version] retrieved on January 10, 2006 from http://www.cruiselaw.com/interview.html