Supreme Court to hear cargo case
The U.S. Supreme Court said Tuesday that it will take up a case, which in the words of an appeals court judge who heard it, revolves around “which federal statute governs a maritime case about a train wreck.”
The case involved cargo such as electric motors, fireworks, and nail casings that were shipped from China by Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd. (“K” Line) through the Port of Long Beach, Calif., to various inland destinations in the Midwest under through bills of lading. The products were damaged when a Union Pacific Railroad train derailed in Oklahoma.
In February, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals refused to enforce a Tokyo forum selection clause contained in a through bill of lading issued by 'K' line, saying that the inland shipment was controlled by the Carmack Amendment despite a so-called “Himalaya Clause” in the bill of lading that extended the scope of the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act to the inland portion of the shipment.
The case is Union Pacific Railroad Company v. Regal-Beloit Corp., 08-1554.
Supreme Court to hear cargo case
