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Conflict of Laws Keyed to Brilmayer
The Bremen v. Zapata Off-Shore Co.
Citation:
407 U.S. 1 (1972)Facts
Plaintiff, Zapata Off-Shore Co., solicited bids for the towage of its ocean-going, self-elevating drilling rig, Chaparral, from Louisiana to a point off of Ravenna, Italy. Zapata, an American corporation, solicited bids for the towage and Defendant, Unterwester, was the low bidder. Zapata requested that Unterweser, a German corporation, submit a contract. The contract contained two clauses purporting to exculpate Unterweser from liability for damages to the towed rig and contained the following provision: “Any dispute arising must be treated before the London Court of Justice.” After reviewing the contract and making changes, Zapata’s vice president executed the contract without any changes to the forum-selection or exculpatory clauses. The contract was then forwarded to Unterweser in Germany, where Unterweser accepted it.
On January 5, 1968, Underweser’s deep sea tug, The Bremen, departed Louisiana with the Chaparral. On January 9, while in international waters in the Gulf of Mexico, a storm caused the Chaparral‘s elevator legs to break off and fall into the sea. Zapata instructed Unterweser to tow the Chaparral to Tampa, Florida. On January 12, Zapata brought suit in admiralty in the U.S. District Court at Tampa, seeking $3.5 million in damages against Unterweser and The Bremen, alleging negligent towage and breach of contract. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit declined to enforce the forum-selection clause governing disputes arising under the international towage contract. The U.S. Supreme Court granted Unterweser’s petition for certiorari.
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