United States Fourth Circuit

In an action brought by plaintiff seeking attachment of a shipping vessel for purposes of satisfying an English judgment, the underlying basis of which was a claim for breach of certain Forward Freight Swap Agreements (FFAs), the district court's order denying defendant's motion to vacate a writ of maritime attachment in favor of plaintiff is affirmed, where the district court properly concluded that it had subject matter jurisdiction because: 1) federal, rather than English, law controls the jurisdictional inquiry of whether the claim sounds in admiralty; and 2) the FFAs are maritime contracts under federal law.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/05/2014
• Published 08/05/2014

Judges

• AGEE

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel