Opinion ID: 173891
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Presumptions and Comparative Fault

Text: In United States v. Reliable Transfer Co., Inc ., the Supreme Court ushered in the practice of comparative fault in maritime collision law. We hold that when two or more parties have contributed by their fault to cause property damage in a maritime collision or stranding, liability for such damage is to be allocated among the parties proportionately to the comparative degree of their fault, and that liability for such damages is to be allocated equally only when the parties are equally at fault or when it is not possible fairly to measure the comparative degree of their fault. 421 U.S. 397, 411, 95 S.Ct. 1708, 44 L.Ed.2d 251 (1975). The presumptions under the rules of THE LOUISIANA and THE OREGON do not affect this principle. See, e.g., Mid-South Towing, 418 F.3d at 532 ([P]roperly cabined the scope of the Oregon rule, which speaks explicitly only to a presumed breach on the part of the alliding vessel, and is not a presumption regarding either the question of causation (either cause in fact or legal cause) or the percentages of fault assigned parties adjudged negligent.); accord M/V Morgan, 375 F.3d at 578 (applying presumption and dividing the damages); Hood v. Knappton Corp., 986 F.2d 329, 332-33 (9th Cir.1993) (applying presumption and dividing damages); Rodi Yachts, 984 F.2d at 888-89 (applying presumption and remanding for further findings on apportionment of damages).