Shipowner in Baltimore bridge collapse tries to blame others as liability case takes shape

BALTIMORE – As a sprawling liability case takes shape following the deadly collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, the owner and manager of the container ship Dali are seeking to absolve themselves of responsibility and shift the blame elsewhere.

Lawyers for Singapore-based Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Group argued in court Tuesday that Maryland officials should have done a better job of protecting the bridge from ship strikes. They also raised questions about whether the shipbuilder installed faulty electrical equipment that caused the Dali to lose power as it approached the bridge.

Meanwhile, lawyers for dozens of plaintiffs seeking damages say the focus should be on where both companies went wrong.

“This is not an offensive instrument,” said attorney David Reisman, representing the state of Maryland. He said the court should not consider such allegations against companies at such an early stage of the trial.

The plaintiffs include the families of six construction workers killed in the collapse, as well as state and local government officials, businesses, longshoremen and many others. They accused Grace Ocean and Synergy of failing to properly maintain the Dali, ignoring long-standing problems with its electrical system and knowingly sending the unseaworthy vessel into Maryland waters.

Shortly after the March 26 collapse, the companies filed a lawsuit in federal court in Baltimore asking to limit their liability. Since then, nearly 50 other organizations have filed opposing lawsuits in the case.

At a planning conference Tuesday, Judge James Bredar questioned attorneys for both sides as he tried to “give structure to this vast and unusual case” that could become the most expensive maritime disaster case in history.

Bredar said the ultimate goal is to get the case “on the launching pad for settlement.” But this may take years. He said the upcoming order would deal with the first phase of the case, including timing and determining the appropriate scope – whether it would be narrowly focused or consider broader issues such as third party liability.

William Bennett, Grace Ocean’s lawyer, said the court should consider assigning “significant responsibility and blame” to government officials, among others. He cited “decades of records” showing that the state of Maryland failed to adequately protect the bridge, which was built in the 1970s with minimal protection for the supports.

The courtroom gallery was filled with lawyers involved in the case. The discovery process will likely involve dozens of hours of testimony over the next several months, culminating in a trial.

It is possible that some federal claims could be resolved during this time. Just last week, Grace Ocean and Synergy agreed to pay more than $102 million in cleanup fees to settle a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice. The payment will reimburse the federal government for money spent clearing massive amounts of debris from the Port of Baltimore’s main shipping channel, which remained closed for months after the collapse.

After the settlement was announced, a spokesperson for Grace Ocean said it was not an admission of liability or wrongdoing.

The Justice Department’s application, which has since been dismissed, provided the most detailed account yet of the cascading series of failures that left Dali’s pilots and crew helpless in the face of impending disaster. The complaint cited “excessive vibration” on the ship, which attorneys called “a well-known cause of transformer and electrical failure.” Instead of dealing with the source of the vibrations, crew members “rigged” the vessel, the complaint alleges.

FBI agents boarded the ship in April as part of a criminal investigation into the circumstances leading up to the crash.

The Dali was leaving Baltimore en route to Sri Lanka when it lost power and veered off course, crashing into a bridge. Six members of the road work crew fell to their deaths. A last-minute distress call from the ship’s pilots allowed police to stop traffic toward the bridge, but they were unable to warn workers.

The accident has snarled commercial shipping through the Port of Baltimore, lengthened commute times for local drivers and left many longshoremen temporarily unemployed. Trucking companies and other companies that relied on the bridge expect long-term consequences, according to court documents.

The federal case will likely be followed by additional lawsuits in Maryland courts.