Jagenberg, Inc. v. Georgia Ports Authority

882 F. Supp. 1065, 1995 A.M.C. 2333, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4869, 1995 WL 223263
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Georgia
DecidedMarch 28, 1995
DocketCiv. A. No. 494-113
StatusPublished
Cited by13 cases

This text of 882 F. Supp. 1065 (Jagenberg, Inc. v. Georgia Ports Authority) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jagenberg, Inc. v. Georgia Ports Authority, 882 F. Supp. 1065, 1995 A.M.C. 2333, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4869, 1995 WL 223263 (S.D. Ga. 1995).

Opinion

ORDER

EDENFIELD, Chief Judge.

Plaintiffs seek to recover damages for loss of cargo consisting of components from an industrial Airknife machine, unloaded and stored by Defendants at the Port of Savannah in May, 1993. Both Defendants now move for partial summary judgment. For reasons stated below the Court DENIES the motion of Defendant Georgia Ports Authority (“GPA”) and GRANTS the motion of Defendant Atlantic Container Line (“ACL”).

I. JURISDICTION

The Court exercises jurisdiction over this case under 28 U.S.C. § 1332, and makes no [1068]*1068finding as to whether jurisdiction would be proper in admiralty, under 28 U.S.C. § 1333. At first glance it appears that admiralty jurisdiction would be inappropriate, but courts have so held under circumstances similar to those in the case at bar. E.g., Certain Underwriters of Lloyds’ v. Barber Blue Sea Line, 675 F.2d 266, 268 n. 1 (11th Cir.1982); Orient Overseas Line v. Globemaster Baltimore, Inc., 33 Md.App. 372, 365 A.2d 325, 335 (1976). See also Puerto Rico Maritime Shipping Authority v. Luallipam, Inc., 631 F.Supp. 1472 (D.P.R.1986) (“A contract to transport goods by sea concerns commerce on navigable waters and, as such, is wholly maritime.”); R. Randall Bridwell, Admiralty Contract Jurisdiction & Contract Liens Under American Law, in Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute Program Materials 06-1, 06-5 (1988) (listing maritime contracts as within admiralty jurisdiction). Such a holding makes sense; “commerce and uniformity go together,” In re Dillahey, 733 F.Supp. 874, 879 (D.N.J.1990) (citation omitted), and carriers of maritime cargo would benefit from uniform rules of liability for their agents and independent contractors at all United States ports, regardless of the state in which those ports are found. Cf. Richards v. Blake Builders Supply, Inc., 528 F.2d 745, 747 (4th Cir.1975) (stating that during the Constitutional Convention “[tjhirteen separate bodies of law were thought quite unacceptable for the governance of international trade”).

II. SUMMARY JUDGMENT STANDARD

Rule 56(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides that summary judgment is appropriate when “there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and ... the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.” All evidence must be considered “in the fight most favorable to the non-moving party,” with all reasonable doubts resolved in favor of that party. Earley v. Champion Int’l Corp., 907 F.2d 1077, 1080 (11th Cir.1990). If the evidence favoring the nonmoving party is merely colorable, or is not significantly probative, summary judgment is appropriate. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2510-11, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986) (subsequent history omitted). A mere “scintilla” of evidence will not suffice to support the non-movant’s position. Walker v. Darby, 911 F.2d 1573, 1577 (11th Cir.1990).

III. GEORGIA PORTS AUTHORITY’S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

A. Facts

The material facts relevant to this motion are not disputed. The parties’ disagreement centers on the legal interrelationships between the carrier’s bill of lading, the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act (“COGSA”), and the Harter Act.

The essential facts are as follows:

Jagenberg, Inc., is a Delaware corporation having its principal place of business in Connecticut. It is the consignee and agent for Jagenberg AG, the shipper of the cargo in question. Jagenberg, Inc., is bound by all contract terms of carriage set by Jagenberg AG as shipper. They will henceforth be collectively referred to as “Jagenberg.” Al-lianz Versicherungs AG is a foreign corporation and the insurer of the cargo.

Atlantic Container Line operated the vessel transporting the cargo from Rotterdam, The Netherlands, to the Port of Savannah for ultimate delivery to Macon, Georgia. Georgia Ports Authority is an agency of the State of Georgia that owns and operates ocean terminal facilities in Savannah. In this ease GPA acted under agreement with ACL with respect to handling and storage of cargo at the Port of Savannah. It is not disputed that GPA was an agent of ACL. See also GPA Tariff at 51.

Jagenberg formed a contract with ACL for shipment of an Airknife Coating Head from Rotterdam to Macon via Savannah, the terms of which are contained in a short form bill of lading issued by ACL entitled “ACL Data-freight Receipt” and a long form bill of lading printed on the reverse side of the Receipt. The bill of lading was a “through bill,” i.e., it obligated the carrier to transport the cargo “through” the Port of Savannah to its ultimate destination.

[1069]*1069The cargo shipment consisted of twenty five packages, twenty two of which were packed in containerized units. The remaining three were crated separately, one of which contained the cargo at issue here — a large component of the Airknife Coating Head. It was completely enclosed within a wooden crate and lashed to a metal flatrack. The flatrack was designed to sit upon and attach to a chassis that could be pulled by a conventional tractor, thus enabling ground transportation of the cargo.

The cargo arrived in Savannah on May 15, 1993, and was turned over to GPA for storage pending arrival of an inland trucker hired by ACL to take it to Macon. By May 20, 1993, all of the containerized units and some of the crates had been trucked to Macon, but while a GPA employee was retrieving the remaining items from a storage area designated for ACL cargo, the items fell from the chassis and were damaged. Jagen-berg and Allianz brought suit against GPA and ACL, arguing that the Defendants breached their obligations as bailees of the cargo and negligently damaged it in the amount of $750,000.

It is also undisputed that the Datafreight Receipt contained a specific space for Jagen-berg to describe the goods and declare their value in U.S. dollars “subject to extra freight as per tariff and clause six of the ACL B/L.” Jagenberg chose not to declare a specific value for its shipment, but had sufficient notice and opportunity to do so. Finally, neither party disputes that the damaged item in question constituted a single “package” for purposes of COGSA, 46 U.S.C.App. § 1304(5), and clause six of the ACL bill of lading.

B. Law

1. GPA’s Argument

GPA asks for partial summary judgment not on liability, but on damages. GPA contends that it is protected by the $500 package liability limitation provided in COGSA. 46 U.S.CApp. § 1304(5).

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882 F. Supp. 1065, 1995 A.M.C. 2333, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4869, 1995 WL 223263, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jagenberg-inc-v-georgia-ports-authority-gasd-1995.