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Divided Damages - The Albatross Of The Modern Mariner., Howard E. Davis Jr.

St. Mary's Law Journal

Since 1854, the United States has followed the English rule regarding ship collision cases: where both vessels involved in a collision are at fault, each party is responsible for one-half of the total damages regardless of its respective degree of blame. At the time, the rule was considered necessary to provide just and equitable results in admiralty litigation. However, the harshness of the rule justifies its disregard in favor of more equitable remedies. The problem with divided damages can be illustrated by the following scenario: a small pleasure craft and an oil tanker collide. The pleasure craft is only slightly …