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Keywords

lawsuitplaintiffdefendantjurisdiction

plaintiffdefendantpleacontinental shelf

Related Cases

Smith v. ODECO (UK), Inc., 615 So.2d 407

Facts

The plaintiff, a resident of the United Kingdom, was injured aboard the drilling rig OCEAN BOUNTY, a U.S. flag vessel owned by Odeco Alaska, Inc., on September 22, 1989. He filed suit on March 27, 1992, in Louisiana, 2½ years after the incident, while also pursuing a claim in Scotland against ODECO (UK), Inc. The defendants argued that the claim was barred by Louisiana's one-year prescriptive period and that Louisiana had no interest in the case since the plaintiff was a UK resident and the injury occurred in Spain.

Plaintiff is a resident and citizen of the United Kingdom. He alleged that he was injured aboard the drilling rig OCEAN BOUNTY, a U.S. flag vessel owned by Odeco Alaska, Inc., on September 22, 1989. The vessel was engaged in exploration and development of offshore energy resources in waters overlaying the Continental Shelf off the coast of Spain.

Issue

Whether the District Court was correct in overruling the defendant's Exception of Prescription.

Rule

The court applied the principle that if the action is not barred under the law of this state, it shall be maintained unless it would be barred in the state whose law is applicable to the merits and maintenance of the action in this state is not warranted by compelling considerations of remedial justice.

When the substantive law of this state would be applicable to the merits of an action brought in this state, the prescription and peremption law of this state applies.

Analysis

The court found that the substantive law of the United Kingdom applied to the plaintiff's action, which had a three-year prescriptive period. The filing of the lawsuit in Scotland interrupted this period. The court determined that Louisiana was the only forum where the plaintiff could maintain a suit against all defendants, as ODECO (UK), Inc. was not subject to the jurisdiction of Scottish courts. Thus, the court concluded that compelling considerations of remedial justice warranted the maintenance of the suit in Louisiana.

The instant suit when filed in Louisiana had not prescribed under the laws of the United Kingdom. Louisiana is the only forum where a suit may be maintained against all the defendants, with their principal offices at 1600 Canal Street, New Orleans, La. and incorporated under Delaware law.

Conclusion

The court affirmed the decision of the lower court, allowing the suit to proceed in Louisiana.

The judgment overruling the plea of prescription is AFFIRMED.

Who won?

The plaintiff prevailed in the case because the court found that compelling considerations of remedial justice justified maintaining the suit in Louisiana despite the defendants' arguments regarding prescription.

The court found that compelling considerations of remedial justice warranted the maintenance of the suit in Louisiana.

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