UN PUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 2 2

- 1766

In re: COMPLAINT OF WILSON YACHTS, LLC AS OWNER OF A 38

- FOOT SAILING CATAMARAN, KNOWN AS THE S/Y SEVEN DAY WEEKEND OFFICIAL NUMBER 1275474 FOR EXONERATION FROM OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

.

------------------------------ W ILSON YACHTS, LLC ,

Plaintiff ,

v. JAMES S. ATSRIKU, Individually and as administrator of the estate of Jerry S. Atsriku; FELICIA ATSRIKU, nee Felicia Oborgor; JOSEPH ATSRIKU , Claimants and Third

- Party Plaintiffs

- Appellants ,

v. SAIL AWAY, LLC , Third Party Defendant

– Appellee , STEVEN MICHAEL COFFMAN , Third Party Defendant

.

No. 22

- 1768 USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 1 of 72 In re: COMPLAINT OF WILSON YACHTS, LLC AS OWNER OF A 38

- FOOT SAILING CATAMARAN, KNOWN AS THE S/Y SEVEN DAY WEEKEND OFFICIAL NUMBER 1275474 FOR EXONERATION FROM OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

.

------------------------------ WILSON YACHTS, LLC , Plaintiff ,

v.
JAMES S. ATSRIKU , Claimant and Third

- Party Plaintiff

– Appellant ,

a nd
FELICIA ATSRIKU, nee Felicia Oborgor; JOSEPH ATSRIKU , Claimants and Third

- Party Plaintiffs ,

v.
STEVEN MICHAEL COFFMAN , Third Party Defendant

– Appellee , SAIL AWAY, LLC , Third Party Defendant

.

No. 22

- 1769 USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 2 of 73 In re: COMPLAINT OF WILSON YACHTS, LLC AS OWNER OF A 38

- FOOT SAILING CATAMARAN, KNOWN AS THE S/Y SEVEN DAY WEEKEND OFFICIAL NUMBER 1275474 FOR EXONERATION FROM OR LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

.

------------------------------ WILSON YACHTS, LLC , Plaintiff

– Appellee ,

v. JAMES S. ATSRIKU, Individually and as administrator of the estate of Jerry S. Atsriku; FELICIA ATSRIKU, nee Felicia Oborgor; JOSEPH ATSRIKU , Claimants and Third

- Party Plaintiffs

– Appellants ,

v. SAIL AWAY, LLC; STEVEN MICHAEL COFFMAN , Third Party Defendants

.

Appeal s from the United States District Court for the District of Maryland , at Baltimore

. Julie R. Rubin , District Judge. ( 1:2 0

- cv - 0 3452

- J RR )

A rgued : December 8 , 2023 Decided: March 19, 2024

Before KING and HARRIS , Circuit Judges, and Rossie D. ALSTON, J r. , United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, sitting by designation.

Affirmed by un published per curiam opinion

. USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 3 of 74 ARGUED: Arnold I. Berschler, BERSCHLER ASSOCIATES PC, San Francisco, California, for Appellants. Todd D. Lochner, LOCHNER LAW FIRM PC, Annapolis, Maryland; Margaret Fonshell Ward, DOWNS WARD BENDER HERZOG & KINTIGH, P.A., Hunt Valley, Maryland, for Appellees. ON BRIEF: Stephen Barnie Freeman, S.B. FREEMAN LAW GROUP, LLC, Brunswick, Maryland, for Appellants. Robert P. O’Brien, Paulina J. Taniewski, NILES, BARTON & WILMER, LLP, Baltimore, Maryland, for Appellee Wilson Yachts, LLC. Gregory R. Singer, LOC HNER LAW FIRM P.C., Annapolis, Maryland, for Appellee Steven Michael Coffman.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 4 of 75 PER CURIAM: This action stems from the drowning of Jerry S. Atsriku in the Rhode River , a navigable tributary o f the Chesapeake Bay , on August 24, 2019, after jumping off a sailing vessel named Seven Day Weekend (the “Vessel”). Following Jerry’s death, the owner of the Vessel, Wilson Yachts, LLC, initiated this litigation under 46 U.S.C. §§ 30501 et seq. seeking exoneration or limitation of its liability as to the tragic incident. In response, the
Estate of the deceased Jerry Atsriku, his twin brother James S. Atsriku, and their parents Felicia Atsriku and Joseph Atsriku (collectively, the “Atsrikus”) filed a third

- party complaint (the “Complaint”) seeking damages for Jerry’s death . The Atsrikus alleged wrongful death claims under both maritime and Maryland law, and they named as third

party defendants no t only Wilson Yachts, but also the charter broker , Sail Aw ay , LLC , and the captain of the Vessel on the day of the incident , Steven Michael Coffman. Additionally, the Complaint alleged a n individual claim by James Atsriku, who witnessed his twin brother’s drowning , for negligent infliction of emotional distress under maritime law against Captain Coffma n. Wilson Yachts, Sail Away, and Captain Coffman moved in the district court for summary judgment pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56. In June 2022, the court granted the third

- party defendants’ summary judgment motions and (1) exonerated Wilson Yachts from liability on all claims; (2) entered judgment in favor of Sail Away on all claims; and (3) entered partial summary judgment in favor of Captain Coffman, dismissing
both the Atsrikus’ maritime wrongful death claim and brother James’s negligent i nfliction
of emotional distress claim. See In re Wilson Yachts, LLC , 605 F. Supp. 3d 695 (D. Md. USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 5 of 76 2022) (the “ Summary Judgment Order ”). What remained after the court’s Summary Judgment Order was the Atsrikus’ wrongful death claim s under Maryland common law against Captain Coffman.
The Atsrikus then noticed these three separate interlocutory appeals which are
consolidated here

— each referencing the same Summary Judgment Order entered by the
district court

— asserting appellate jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(3). One appeal, No. 22

- 1766, was filed on behalf of the Atsrikus , contest ing the court’s resolution
of their claims against Sail Away; the second appeal, No. 22

- 1768, was filed on behalf of
James Atsriku , challenging the court’s resolution of his individual claim a gainst Captain Coffman; and the third appeal, No. 22

- 1769, was filed on behalf of the Atsrikus , contest ing
the court’s resolution of their claims against Wilson Yachts. * Having assessed the various submissions of the parties and with the benefit of oral argument, we are satisfied that the district court did not err in its various awards of summary judgment. Indeed, we are satisfied to adopt the court’s carefully crafted and well

-

* During oral argument , this C ourt raised the question of our jurisdiction to consider these appeals at this time , as the issue was only fleetingly addressed in the parties’ briefs

. We th us requested counsel for both sides to submit supplemental briefing on the jurisdictional issue. Upon consideration of the supplemental briefing, we are content to accept the proposition that we possess jurisdiction to dispose of these appeals under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(3) , which provides for appellate jurisdiction from interlocutory orders

“ determining the rights and liabilities of the parties to admiralty cases

. ” See 28 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(3) ; see also In re Intercontinental Props. Mgmt. , 604 F.2d 254, 258 n.2 (4th Cir. 1979) ; Barna Conshipping, S.L. v. 2,000 Metric Tons, More or Less, of Abandoned Steel , 410 F . App ’ x 716 , 719 n.2 (4th Cir. 2011)

. USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 6 of 77 reasoned Summary Judgment Order addressing and disposing of the relevant issues. We therefore reject each of the appellate contentions of the Atsrikus and affirm.
AFFIRMED USCA4 Appeal: 22-1766 Doc: 62 Filed: 03/19/2024 Pg: 7 of 7