The law of the sea

by George L. Canfield; J. Y. Brinton; George W. Dalzell

13. Loss of Life.—

Until March 30, 1920, the general maritime law did not give any right to recover for loss of life. On that date an act of Congress was approved, the text of which follows:

That whenever the death of a person shall be caused by wrongful act, neglect or default occurring on the high seas beyond a marine league from the shores of any State, or the District of Columbia, or the Territories or dependencies of the United States, the personal representatives of the decedent may maintain a suit for damages in the district courts of the United States, in admiralty, for the exclusive benefit of the decedent's wife, husband, parent, child, or dependent relative against the vessel, person, or corporation which would have been liable if death had not ensued.

Sec. 2. That the recovery in such suit shall be a fair and just compensation for the pecuniary loss sustained by the persons for whose benefit the suit is brought and shall be apportioned among them by the court in proportion to the loss they may severally have suffered by reason of the death of the person by whose representative the suit is brought.

Sec. 3. That such suit shall be begun within two years from the date of such wrongful act, neglect, or default, unless during that period there has not been reasonable opportunity for securing jurisdiction of the vessel, person or corporation sought to be charged; but after the expiration of such period of two years the right of action hereby given shall not be deemed to have lapsed until ninety days after a reasonable opportunity to secure jurisdiction has offered.

Sec. 4. That whenever a right of action is granted by the law of any foreign State on account of death by wrongful act, neglect, or default, occurring upon the high seas, such right may be maintained in an appropriate action in admiralty in the courts of the United States without abatement in respect to the amount for which recovery is authorized, any statute of the United States to the contrary notwithstanding.

Sec. 5. That, if a person die as the result of such wrongful act, neglect, or default as is mentioned in section 1 during the pendency in a court of admiralty of the United States of a suit to recover damages for personal injuries in respect of such act, neglect, or default, the personal representative of the decedent may be substituted as a party and the suit may proceed as a suit under this Act for the recovery of the compensation provided in section 2.

Sec. 6. That in suits under this Act the fact that the decedent has been guilty of contributory negligence shall not bar recovery, but the court shall take into consideration the degree of negligence attributable to the decedent and reduce the recovery accordingly.

Sec. 7. That the provisions of any State statute giving or regulating rights of action or remedies for death shall not be affected by this Act. Nor shall this Act apply to the Great Lakes or to any waters within the territorial limits of any State, or to any navigable waters in the Panama Canal Zone.

Sec. 8. That this Act shall not affect any pending suit, action, or proceeding.

It will be observed that this act places loss of life on the high seas in the same category as personal injuries. The suit is to be brought by the personal representative of the decedent for the benefit of the decedent's wife, husband, parent, child or dependent relative. It would appear that if there are no such persons an action could not be maintained. This would seem to exclude a right of action where the decedent leaves only creditors or heirs of more remote degree than those enumerated. Nearly all the states have statutes providing for recovery on account of loss of life at sea and these statutes have hitherto been enforced in the admiralty courts. Section 7 provides that the federal act shall not affect rights of action or remedies for death provided by state laws. The act is broad enough in terms to include a right of action for the death of seamen, but there is another statute covering such cases (see Chapter V, § 6, supra).

The act does not affect the right of the owners of a ship to limit their liability. Claims for loss of life when properly payable under the act would apparently be included among claims to be paid out of the limited liability.

The act does not enlarge the responsibility of the owners. Whether they are responsible in personam, or whether the vessel is solely responsible in rem depends on the privity or knowledge of the owner, as discussed in Chapter VIII, § 9 infra.