Section 11.32 Forum-Selection Clauses

• Library: Tort Law 2016

C. (§11.32) Forum-Selection Clauses

Forum-selection clauses in the maritime context generally appear in passenger tickets for cruise vessels. A passenger ticket for an ocean voyage is a maritime contract, and the effect given the ticket conditions, including forum-selection clauses, is governed by general maritime law. See:

· M/S Bremen v. Zapata Off-Shore Co., 407 U.S. 1, 10 (1972)

· Hodes v. S.N.C. Achille Lauro ed Altri-Gestione, 858 F.2d 905, 909 (3 ^rd Cir. 1988)

· Licensed Practical Nurses, Technicians & Health Care Workers of N.Y., Inc. v. Ulysses Cruises, Inc., 131 F. Supp. 2d 393 (S.D.N.Y. 2000)

In Carnival Cruise Lines, Inc. v. Shute, 499 U.S. 585 (1991), the U.S. Supreme Court held that forum-selection clauses are enforceable against consumers even though they appear in preprinted tickets and obviously are not the product of bargaining between the cruise operator and the passenger. Under the holding in Shut...