ELR Citation: 50 ELR 20075
No(s). 18-565 (U.S. Mar 30, 2020)

The U.S. Supreme Court upheld an appellate court ruling that an oil refining company was responsible for $140 million in damages from a 2004 oil spill in the Delaware River. The owner of the vessel involved in the spill argued that the company it chartered to deliver crude oil from Venezuela to the company's refinery near Philadelphia had breached the safe-berth clause in the charter agreement, which required it to designate a safe berth at which the vessel could load and discharge cargo, and thus was at fault for the spill. An appellate court held that the clause embodied an express warranty of safety and that the company was liable to the owner for breaching that warranty. The company countered that the clause did not impose strict liability or liability without regard to fault, but rather imposed a mere duty of due diligence in the selection of the berth. The Supreme Court found that the plain language of the clause did not include any liability-limiting language and clearly required the company to select a safe berth, which amounted to a warranty of safety. It therefore affirmed the appellate court ruling. Sotomayor, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Ginsburg, Breyer, Kagan, Gorsuch, and Kavanaugh, JJ., joined. Thomas, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Alito, J., joined.