Sea Hunt, Incorporated v. The Unidentified Shipwrecked Vessel

Facts

LA GALGA was a fifty-gun frigate commissioned into the Spanish Navy in 1732. LA GALGA left Havana on August 18, 1750, in order to escort a convoy of merchant ships to Spain. The convoy encountered a hurricane near Bermuda that scattered the ships and forced them westward toward the American coast. LA GALGA sank off the coast of the Maryland/Virginia border. Most of the crew and passengers reached land safely. When Captain Daniel Houny attempted to salvage items from the wreck, he found that local residents had already begun looting the vessel. He secured the assistance of Governor Ogle of Maryland, but any further salvage efforts ended when a second storm came and broke up what was left of the ship. LA GALGA remained undisturbed until the recent salvage efforts by Sea Hunt (P). The JUNO, a thirty-four-gun frigate, entered the service of the Spanish Navy in 1790. On January 15, 1802, JUNO set sail from Veracruz bound for Spain. The JUNO was beset by a ferocious storm and began taking on water. It encountered the American schooner LA FAVORITA. The two ships sailed together trying to reach an American port before JUNO succumbed to her leaks. As JUNO continued to take on water, the Captain ordered his passengers and crew to begin transferring to LA FAVORITA. At least 413 sailors, soldiers, and civilians perished in the sinking of JUNO. Spanish authorities ordered an investigation into the sinking, but the location of the wreck was not discovered until Sea Hunt's (P) recent efforts. Virginia (P) has asserted ownership over LA GALGA and JUNO pursuant to the Abandoned Shipwreck Act of 1987. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission granted Sea Hunt (P) permits to explore for shipwrecks off the Virginia coast and conduct salvage operations. Sea Hunt (P) has spent about a million dollars in conducting remote sensing, survey, diving, and identification operations. Sea Hunt (P) claims that its efforts have resulted in finding the remains of LA GALGA and JUNO. Sea Hunt (P) initiated an in rem admiralty action against the two wrecks seeking a declaration that it had full salvage rights or in the alternative a liberal salvage award for its efforts. The district court issued an order directing the arrest of the shipwrecked vessels and granting Sea Hunt (P) exclusive rights of salvage until further notice. The court also directed Sea Hunt (P) to send specific notice of the action to both the United States and D. The United States moved to intervene and filed a verified claim on behalf of D. The district court found that the United States lacked authority to appear on behalf of D and granted D 90 days to refile a verified claim. D denied ever abandoning the vessels. D put forth affidavits and exhibits showing that at the time of their sinking, both ships were serving as vessels of the Royal Navy, that both vessels are currently on the register of the Spanish Navy, and that transfer or abandonment of the vessels would require formal authorization by the government of Spain. The court found that the express abandonment standard applied to these shipwrecks and that D had abandoned its claim to LA GALGA under Article XX of the 1763 Definitive Treaty of Peace between France, Great Britain, and Spain. It found that Spain did not expressly abandon JUNO in the 1819 Treaty ending the conflict between Spain and the United States stemming from the War of 1812. The district court held that Sea Hunt (P) could not rightfully claim a salvage award because D, as the acknowledged owner of JUNO, had expressly refused salvage services. D now appeals the judgment concerning LA GALGA. Ps cross-appealed with regard to JUNO and the denial of a salvage award. Ps argue that the Abandoned Shipwreck Act requires the application of an implied abandonment standard for shipwrecks in coastal waters and that D has abandoned LA GALGA and JUNO.

Issues

Rule of Law

Holding and Decision

Legal Analysis

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