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40 Tul. Mar. L.J. 531 (2015-2016)
Progress Be Dammed: The Eighth Circuit Limits Sec. 408 of the Rivers and Harbors Act to in Rem Recovery, Aggravating Crumbling Infrastructure on Inland Water Shipping Routes

handle is hein.journals/tulmar40 and id is 549 raw text is: 




Progress  Be Dammed: The Eighth Circuit Limits § 408 of the
Rivers  and  Harbors  Act  to  In Rem   Recovery,   Aggravating
Crumbling   Infrastructure on Inland Water  Shipping  Routes

I.   INTRODUCTION         ............................ ..... 531
II.  BACKGROUND          ...................................... 532
     A.  The Supreme  Court Finds an Implicit In Personam
         Cause ofAction  for § 409 i Wyandotte .......    .....534
     B.  Circuit Courts Split on Applying Wyandotte
         Analysis to § 408  .................................534
         1.   The Sixth Circuit Applies Wyandotte to Find an In
              Personam Cause of Action For § 408 Violations .......... 534
         2.   The Fifth and Tenth Circuits Decline to Extend the
              WyandotteAnalysis to § 408 Claims .......  .......534
         3.   The Eighth Circuit Declines to Rule on Whether
              an In Personam Cause of Action Exists for § 408 ........ 536
III. THE COURT'S DECISION      ............................... 536
IV.  ANALYSIS .............      ........................ ...... 539
V.   CONCLUSION                        .......................................... 542

I.   INTRODUCTION
     The M/V  JULIE WHITE   was towing four rock-laden barges on the
Mississippi River when they broke loose and drifted downstream towards
a dam.' All four barges allided with lock and dam structures owned by
the United States government and sank immediately upstream of the dam
gates.2 The lock and dam  sustained damages and  the United States
government  submitted a  written claim to the towboat  owner, the
American  River Transport Company (ARTCO).'  ARTCO immediately
filed a claim seeking to limit its liability to the value of the tow and
pending freight in the amount of $1.3 million.!
     Pursuant to Supplemental Rule F of the Federal Rules of Civil
Procedure, the district court enjoined the government from filing any
separate suits against ARTCO relating to the same cause of action.! The

    1.  In r Am. River Transp. Co. (ARTCO I), 728 F.3d 839, 840, 2014 AMC 480, 481
(8th Cir. 2013).
    2.  Id
    3.  In reAm. River Transp. Co. (ARTCO11), 800 E3d 428,432 (8th Cir. 2015).
    4.  ARTCO1 728 E3d at 840,2014 AMC at 481.
    5.  ARTCOIJ 800 E3d at 432.
                               531

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