Admiralty Jurisdiction

Admiralty jurisdiction is the special competence of a court over maritime claims: collision, salvage, cargo damage, crew wages, mortgages, and supplies. Its distinguishing feature is the action in rem, which proceeds against the ship as defendant and lets a claimant arrest the vessel to found jurisdiction and obtain security. In the United States the grant flows from Article III of the Constitution and 28 U.S.C. section 1333; in England it is codified in the Senior Courts Act 1981 sections 20 to 24.