Limitation of Liability in Maritime Law...
New York City Legal Team Loses Attempt to Invoke Limitation of Liability in Tragic Crash of Staten Island Ferry Andrew Barberi
In the tragic October 2003 allision in which the Staten Island Ferry Andrew Barberi struck a concrete maintenance pier while traveling at close to her sea speed of around 17 knots, where 11 people died and more than 60 were injured, the legal team for the City of New York played hardball with the injury and wrongful death victims. They pulled out a maritime law tactic that dates back to the 1800s. They tried to invoke the Limitation of Shipowners’ Liability Act of 1851 to try to put a money cap on the awards of injury victims and families of those who were killed.
After an investigation revealed that the pilot in the Staten Island ferry crash had passed out at the helm, the City of New York, citing the Limitation of Shipowners’ Liability Act of 1851, filed a complaint seeking to limit its liability to $14.4 million, the post-casualty value of the ferry. However, the National Transportation Safety Board stood in the way. The findings of the NTSB raised an obstacle to the City of New York to limit liability when it blamed the accident on the City’s poor oversight of its ferry fleet and its failure to provide the fleet with effective safety measures.