Maritime class actions typically originate from mass events affecting large numbers of passengers or crew — disease outbreaks aboard vessels, casualties at sea, environmental incidents, or systemic failures in the conditions of carriage. Plaintiffs in these proceedings often seek to aggregate claims under Rule 23 or analogous mechanisms, asserting theories grounded in negligence, breach of the carrier’s duty of care, deceptive trade practices, or violations of public health regulations. The threshold question in many of these cases is whether the claims are properly governed by general maritime law, federal statute, or the law of a particular state or foreign jurisdiction.

The enforceability of forum selection clauses and limitations-of-liability provisions contained in passenger ticket contracts is a recurring issue in maritime class litigation and has been the subject of extensive federal court analysis. Additional complexity arises from the application of international conventions, the Death on the High Seas Act, and the intersection of maritime preemption with state consumer protection and tort statutes. The procedural posture of these cases is further shaped by choice-of-law determinations that may differ across putative class members, complicating certification analysis and the manageability of class-wide adjudication.

• Class action defense on behalf of cruise lines and maritime operators in passenger injury and illness claims
• Litigation involving the enforceability of forum selection clauses and arbitration provisions in passenger ticket contracts
• Claims governed by the Death on the High Seas Act, Limitation of Liability Act, and international maritime conventions
• Pandemic-related and public health class claims arising from vessel operations
• Disputes at the intersection of maritime preemption and state consumer protection statutes