Court Opinion

ID: 9434883
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-03 00:00:35.153591+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:12:56.122140
License: Public Domain

Case: 22-30295    Document: 00516843751          Page: 1   Date Filed: 08/02/2023

          United States Court of Appeals
               for the Fifth Circuit
                                                                      United States Court of Appeals
                                                                               Fifth Circuit

                              ____________                                   FILED
                                                                        August 2, 2023
                               No. 22-30295                             Lyle W. Cayce
                              ____________                                   Clerk

   In re the Complaint of Plimsoll Marine, Incorporated,
   Owner of the M/V OKALOOSA, for Exoneration from or
   Limitation of Liability

   Plimsoll Marine, Incorporated, Owner of the M/V OKALOOSA,
   for Exoneration from or Limitation of Liability,

                                   Petitioner/Third Party Plaintiff—Appellee,

                                    versus

   Empire Stevedoring, Incorporated;
   Board of Commissioners of the Port of New Orleans,

                                             Third Party Defendants—Appellees,

                                    versus

   City of Gretna,

                                           Claimant—Appellant.
                 ______________________________

                 Appeal from the United States District Court
                    for the Eastern District of Louisiana
                          USDC No. 2:19-CV-14757
                 ______________________________
Case: 22-30295         Document: 00516843751             Page: 2      Date Filed: 08/02/2023

                                          No. 22-30295

   Before Higginbotham, Smith, and Engelhardt, Circuit Judges.
   Per Curiam: *
          Plimsoll Marine, Inc., the owner of the vessel M/V OKALOOSA,
   brought an action seeking exoneration from or limitation of its liability for an
   allision that occurred on the Mississippi River in 2019. The incident oc-
   curred off the First Street Wharf, owned by the Board of Commissions of the
   Port of New Orleans but leased to and operated by Empire Stevedoring, Inc.
          On the night of June 30, 2019, the OKALOOSA was picking up two
   loaded barges from the Wharf when a line placed on one of the Wharf’s bol-
   lards caught in one of the OKALOOSA’s propellers and stalled the engine.
   The provenance of the line was uncertain. Because the OKALOOSA lost
   steerage, its captain ordered its crew to evacuate the vessel; the captain also
   ultimately abandoned ship. The OKALOOSA then drifted across the Missis-
   sippi and allided with water dolphins owned by the City of Gretna.
          Gretna filed a claim in Plimsoll’s action for damages to the dolphins.
   Plimsoll impleaded Empire and the Board of Commissioners, alleging—if
   Plimsoll was found liable to Gretna—negligence under general maritime law
   and that either or both of the impleaded parties were liable for any damage
   done to Gretna’s dolphins. Plimsoll also sought compensation from Empire
   and the Board of Commissioners for any damage done to the vessel.
          The district court conducted a three-day bench trial, after which it dis-
   missed both Gretna’s claim in limitation against Plimsoll and Plimsoll’s
   third-party claims against Empire and the Board of Commissioners. The
   court found that the line that fouled the OKALOOSA’s propeller belonged
   to an unidentified third party rather than Empire, the Board of Commis-
   sioners, or Plimsoll. The court also found that Empire had exercised reason-
          _____________________
          *
              This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.

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Case: 22-30295      Document: 00516843751          Page: 3    Date Filed: 08/02/2023

                                    No. 22-30295

   able (and therefore sufficient) diligence in maintaining the Wharf as a safe
   berth for vessels.
          Accordingly, the court found that neither Empire nor the Board of
   Commissioners acted negligently toward Plimsoll. It further found that Plim-
   soll did not negligently cause the allision: The fouling of the OKALOOSA’s
   propeller was not on account of any negligence by the captain, and the captain
   acted reasonably when the fouled propeller created an emergency situation.
          On appeal, Gretna contends that the district court erred by deciding
   that Empire and the Board of Commissioners discharged their duty as wharf-
   ingers to provide a safe berth. Gretna also claims that the court held Plimsoll
   to the wrong legal standard of care and incorrectly concluded that the
   OKALOOSA’s captain was not negligent in operating the vessel.
          We have reviewed the briefs, the applicable law, and pertinent parts
   of the record and have heard oral argument. The judgment is AFFIRMED,
   essentially for the reasons stated in the district court’s comprehensive find-
   ings of fact and conclusions of law following the bench trial.

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