Wilson Fishing Co. Ltd. v. The Western Investor

This was another collision action that occurred during the shotgun roe herring fishery, a fishery which the Trial Judge described as “a most unusual kind of maritime adventure,one that compels masters to sacrifice good seamanship for profit”. The Plaintiff alleged that due to the negligence of the Defendants , the Defendant vessel collided with the Plaintiff’s skiff and the Plaintiff’s net became entangled in the propeller of the Defendant ship. As a result, the Plaintiff was unable to participate in the fishery. The Defendant denied liability. The Trial Judge reviewed the circumstances leading to the collision. She found that the Plaintiff’s Master was 100% responsible for creating a situation of imminent peril by failing to keep a proper lookout. She also found that the Plaintiff’s skiff and the Defendant vessel were equally responsible for the collision because they failed to take evasive action. However, she held that the damage to the Plaintiff’s net was not an inevitable consequence of the collision. She found that immediately after the collision the Plaintiff’s net was not entangled in the propeller of the Defendant ship. Rather, the entanglement occurred when the Defendant Master ordered the engines to be restarted too soon after the collision and before the net could be towed a safe distance away. The Trial Judge therefore held the damage to the net was caused solely by the Defendants. On the issue of damages, however, the Trial Judge held that the Plaintiff was not entitled to damages for a lost catch since the Plaintiff had aborted his set before the collision when a third party vessel cut him off.