Yang MacHine Tool Co. v. Sea-Land Service, Inc.

ORDER

The memorandum disposition filed March 20,1995, is redesignated as an authored opinion by Judge Boochever.

OPINION

Yang Machine Tool Company (‘Yang Machine”) contracted with Sea-Land Service, Inc. (“Sea-Land”) to transport two cases of oversized cargo from China to California. The cargo was damaged while being res-towed onto a substitute vessel in Japan, and Yang Machine sued for recovery of damages. The district court found that the restowage of the cargo onto the substitute vessel constituted an “unreasonable deviation,” and the court granted Yang Machine’s motion for summary judgment. Sea-Land appeals the judgment and seeks to limit its liability to $500 per package under 46 U.S.CApp. § 1304(5). We reverse and remand the case to enter judgment for Yang Machine in the amount of $1,000.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Sea-Land is an ocean carrier that regularly carries goods from ports in Asia to the United States. Yang Machine contracted with Sea-Land to transport a large horizontal machining center from China to California. Yang Machine had shipped cargo with Sea-Land over 100 times prior to this particular shipment.

Because the machinery was considered…