Forrest Booth publishes article in the IBA Martime & Transport Law Committee Newsletter

Forrest Booth, Member and head of the Maritime Practice Group of Severson & Werson, recently published an article that discusses an important Admiralty case decision (Certain Underwriters at Lloyds, London v. Inlet Fisheries, Inc.) handed down by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The Ninth Circuit is the largest of the federal circuits. The article is directed at an audience of foreign lawyers, who may not be familiar with U.S. law and our federal system. Mr. Booth examines the court's ruling that the doctrine of Utmost Good Faith is an established part of federal admiralty law, and that it applies to the interpretation of all marine insurance policies. Mr. Booth's article explains that this ruling is significant for two reasons; first, the Ninth Circuit followed several other circuits in its ruling, but it considered and rejected a notable case from the Fifth Circuit which held to the contrary. Also the court held that federal and not state law applies to maritime policies, due to the need for nation-wide uniformity in maritime law.

The article is published in the June 2008 issue of the International Bar Association's Maritime and Transport Law Committee newsletter. To request a copy of this article, please contact Forrest Booth or you may download it from here.