Schoenlank v. Kurz-Moran Shipping Agency
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York
847 F. Supp. 311, 1994 AMC 1656 (1994)

- Written by Alex Ruskell, JD
Facts
R.J. Schoenlank (plaintiff) offered his pilotage services to a vessel operated by Kurz-Moran Shipping Agency (Kurz-Moran) (defendant). The vessel operated under two endorsements, or licenses, one for “registry” and one for “coastwise.” Registry operation consisted of sailing for foreign trade and required a state-licensed pilot when sailing in state-controlled waters. Coastwise operation consisted of domestic trade between the states and required a federally licensed pilot. Schoenlank was licensed by the State of New Jersey to pilot certain vessels in the state’s waters. Because Kurz-Moran’s vessel was sailing only without cargo between two states, Kurz-Moran refused Schoenlank’s offer to pilot the vessel in New Jersey waters because the journey was not a registry voyage requiring a state pilot. Schoenlank sued. Kurz-Moran argued that it was not required to engage Schoenlank’s services because the voyage was a voyage without cargo to move the vessel from one American port to another, thus making the voyage more like a coastwise voyage.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Haight, J.)
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