Boat U.S. - March 2009 - (Page 14)

LeGAL Storm A contract with its Mexican crew might have avoided a legal dispute over an American-0wned Viking like this one. Cautionary Tale In Mexico When most boaters think about cruising south of the border, their first thoughts likely focus on sunny days, warm seas, and cozy beaches. But a recent incident regarding absentee American yacht owners and their Mexican crew shows that it takes extra planning, diligence, and knowledge to avoid proverbial hot water. The incident, which revolved around an American-owned Viking 65, began in Cabo San Lucas, Baja California, Mexico, late in the summer of 2008. A long-distance feud had been simmering for months between the paid captain, a Mexican national, and one of the boat’s two owners about alleged poor working conditions for the hired crew, including unpaid salaries, medical bills, and fuel expenses. The conflict escalated when the captain, with the help of a local attorney, documented these complaints, all of which the owners steadfastly denied. Rather than immediately flying down to meet with the disgruntled captain and crew upon receipt of the written complaint, the owners ordered them to deliver the boat to the port of Ensenada, some 60 miles south of the U.S./Mexico border. That’s when things got sticky. Once there, the captain and crew commandeered the Viking at the dock. There they disabled electrical panels, chained the boat’s propellers together, ran another chain through the BoatU.S. Magazine March 2009 bow thruster to a piling, and refused to debark or relinquish control to prevent the owners from moving the boat back to U.S. waters. While they seemingly had no legal power to hold the boat there, the captain and crew relied on sympathetic dockworkers and marina operators, and then local authorities stepped in and would not allow owners’ representatives to move the boat. For a while, it looked as though the boat might languish for months while lawsuits made their way through the court system, but then a Mexican judge somewhat quickly ruled that the captain and crew had no right to place a lien on the boat. The judge ordered the yacht freed and the owners then enlisted Capt. Robert Butler of Vessel Assist, San Diego, to sail it back, under the watchful eye of a U.S. Coast Guard cutter. It took nearly two months and cost them thousands of dollars but the owners got their boat back. However, Butler believes the entire ordeal could have been avoided had the owners taken a few precautionary steps when they hired the captain and crew in the first place. “Document everything” is Butler’s advice. “The owners should’ve drawn up a contract that outlined crew duties, pay and terms of severance, and had it filed it in Mexico [not in the U.S.] with a Mexican attorney.” Butler’s advice could apply to any U.S. boat owner contemplating hiring foreign nationals to crew their boat in another country. — Jack Innis Photo by richard gash, sea scout shiP 41

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Boat U.S. - March 2009 Contents Reader Forum Boat U.S. Reports What’s New In The Brew? The Perfect Paint Job Launch Into Spring Boats Gear Wheels One Mom, Two Teens, No Exit So, Nigel Had This Idea Ice Devices It Was A Club Of Their Own Expanding The Boating Universe Tech Connection A Case Study In Getting Results Let’s All Do This Together Classifieds Member Benefits/At Your Service

Boat U.S. - March 2009

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