Northeast Research, LLC v. One Shipwrecked Vessel
Plaintiff filed an in rem action in federal court laying claim to the intact shipwreck of an early nineteenth century wooden schooner at the bottom of Lake Erie under admiralty law as the finder and salvor of the sunken vessel. New York intervened, asserting title under state law and the Abandoned Shipwreck Act, 43 U.S.C. 4101 et seq. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of New York. The court concluded that abandonment could be inferred from circumstantial evidence and affirmed the judgment of the district court on the basis that the record demonstrated by clear and convincing evidence that the shipwreck was abandoned within the meaning of the Act. The court also concluded that plaintiff failed to raise a material dispute of fact on this issue. View "Northeast Research, LLC v. One Shipwrecked Vessel" on Justia Law