Full Volume 19 - Federal Maritime Commission

INDEX DIGEST 833
Section 18 b 3 is limited by its terms to common carriers or conferences of such
carriers A carrier s agent does not transport property is not a party to a conference
agreement consisting of carriers and has no tariffof its own there is no doctrine that a
carrier may stand aloof while the agent assumes full responsibility for violation of the
carrier s duties under the Act Id 382383
Section 33 of the Shipping Act does not preclude the Federal Maritime exercise of
jurisdiction over a company engaged in the transportation of passengers for hire between
various points on the Atlantic Coast of the United States pursuant to P L 89 777 Not
only was P L 89 777 not enacted as part of the Shipping Act but section 33 only
precludes concurrent with the ICC subject matter jurisdiction While the carrier here is
subject to Part III of the Interstate Commerce Act none of its provisions are even
similar to provisions of section 3 of P L 89777 American Cruise Lines Inc 420 422
Part III of the Interstate Commerce Act does not contain a provision requiring parties
subject to that Part to establish financial responsibility for passenger indemnification as
required by P L 89 777 Accordingly the FMC in exercising jurisdiction over an
interstate common carrier subject to ICC jurisdiction under P L 89 777 is not
exercising concurrent jurisdiction with the ICC Not ouly does the ICA not prohibit
carriers subject to it from complying with the rules and regulations of other agencies
but it specifically provides in Part III thereof that nothing in this chapter shall be
construed to affect liabilities of vessels and their owners for loss or damage
Id 422 423
The 1916 Shipping Act limited the Commission s in personam jurisdiction in only
three respectsI there must be a common carrier by water which is not a tramp or
ferryboat 2 the carrier must transport cargo between the United States and a foreign
country and 3 the Commission may not exercise concurrent jurisdiction over any
matter within the jurisdiction of the ICC The FMC s foreign commerce jurisdiction is
not restricted to ocean carriers operating vessels which physically call at United States
ports A common carrier engaged in through transportation of goods between the United
States and a foreign country by water is subject to section I of the 1916 Act Austasia
Container Express 512 518
The 1916 Shipping Act does not permit the Commission to directly reach the port to
port rate of an ocean carrier operating ouly between two foreign countries Nordoes the
Commission envision section I of the Act as encompassing joint rate through route
international transportation offered by ICC regulated carriers via foreign ports in
conjunction with ocean carriers which are themselves subject to the Shipping Act Id
518
American goods exported to Canada on one bill of lading may be shipped elsewhere
under a second bill of lading without directly involving the Commission s jurisdiction
However extraterritorial aspects of section 15 agreements or other anticompetitive
actions by section I carriers violative of sections 16or I7 may be within the scope of the
Shipping Act Id 518
Nonvessel operating carriers are section I carriers They undertake to provide ocean
transportation to the public and are subject to the same tariff filing requirements as
vessel operating carriers Id 518 519
Carrier which holds itself out as offering a through common carrier service from
Detroit to various Australian ports truck to Windsor Ontario rail to Vancouver
Canada vessels to Australia and which issues a single bill of lading for the entire
movement when the cargo reaches Canada is a nonvessel operating common carrier in
the foreign commerce of the United States within the meaning of section I of the 19I6
Shipping Act To accord jurisdictional significance to the fact that the bill of lading is
19 F M C