Owner, Manager of M/V Dali Seek to Limit Liability for Collision With Baltimore Bridge
Grace Ocean Private Limited, owner of the vessel that brought down a segment of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore last week, filed a petition in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland on April 1 seeking to avoid liability "for any loss or damage arising out of" the vessel's collision with the bridge. The manager of the M/V Dali vessel, Synergy Marine, also joined the petition (In the Matter of the Petition of Grace Ocean Private Limited, D. Md. # 24-00941).
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Alternatively, should the court find Grace Ocean or Synergy liable, the pair asked that liability be limited to "the value of the Vessel and its pending freight in connection with the voyage."
The petition said that the collision "was not due to any fault, neglect, or want of care on the part of Petitioners, the Vessel, or any persons or entities for whose acts Petitioners may be responsible." The companies assessed the value of the vessel at the time of the voyage to not be beyond $90 million, though repair and salvage costs are estimated to be at least $47.5 million combined. As a result, the companies said the value of the vessel at the end of the voyage is estimated to be around $42.5 million.
The petition is looking to get the court to affirm an interim stipulation of value of $43,670,000, which represents the value of the vessel plus "pending freight less repair costs and salvage costs." Grace Ocean and Synergy asserted the benefits of limitation of liability under U.S. maritime law, telling the court they're "ready and willing to give a stipulation with sufficient surety for the payment into the Court of the value of the Vessel and its pending freight, and for costs, as provided for by the Limitation Act, Rule F of the Supplemental Rules."