Usatorre v. The Victoria

The Victoria, an Argentine-flagged vessel owned by an Argentine company and crewed by Argentines, Portuguese, and Spaniards, set sail from Buenos Aires, Argentina, to Edgewater, New Jersey. When the ship neared New York but was still 300 miles offshore, the Victoria was struck by a torpedo. In response, the captain directed part of the crew to load into a lifeboat. An hour later, a second torpedo struck the ship, causing the captain to order all to abandon ship. The United States Navy came upon the abandoned ship and coordinated the completion of the journey—under the Victoria’s own power—to New York Harbor. The Navy also rescued the crew members and officers from the Victoria. Miguel Usatorre and other crew members (the crew) (plaintiffs) sued for wages and salvage of the vessel in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. During the trial, an expert for the ship owner testified about Argentine law. The expert did not have significant experience in Argentine law and claimed that no substantive caselaw in Argentina would interpret Argentina’s codified laws. The district court applied jus gentium (international common law) in finding that the crew’s employment contracts ended because the ship had been abandoned, and the crew was entitled to recovery. The owner of the Victoria appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.