Kathleen Molnes Walston v. Thelma Lambertsen

Appellee and her husband were the owners of a seagoing vessel known as “Frank L. III”. They had caused the vessel to be constructed in 1955, and it was built in the knowledge that it would be used for two purposes, namely, sports fishing and crab fishing. It was built of wood, had a gross tonnage of thirteen tons and a net tonnage of twelve tons, and its dimensions were 38.8 feet in length, 14 feet in width, and 3.4 feet depth in hull. On February 21, 1959, the vessel sank off the coast of the State of Washington. She was engaged in crab fishing operations at the time, and her master and the only two crewmen were drowned. Appellant, the widow of one of the crewmen, instituted an action for damages in a Washington state court alleging that the loss of her husband’s life resulted from unseaworthiness of the vessel and from negligence in its maintenance, construction, and operation.

Appellee, whose husband and co-owner of the vessel died following the tragedy at sea, filed a petition in the court below seeking, under the provisions of Sections 183-189 of Title 46 U.S.C. (1958), to exonerate herself from liability or to limit the extent of her liability. Issue was joined, trial was…