MIAMI – A Florida man is filing a motion to indemnify him against claims arising from an accident that allegedly occurred aboard a sailboat he owns.
Benjamin Tourangeau filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida seeking exoneration under Rule F of the Supplemental Rules for Certain Admiralty and Maritime Claims.
According to the complaint, potential claimant Jennifer Kelley was aboard the plaintiff’s Sailfish 2680CC on Aug. 2, 2015 when she was injured when it struck a navigational marker. Tourangeau claims he had no foreknowledge of the conditions that caused the accident; and that since he was not negligent, he should be exonerated from liability for all losses or damages.
Tourangeau seeks a court ruling preventing any damage claims from being filed against him. He is represented by attorneys Jerry D. Hamilton, David N. Gambach and Evan Gutwein of Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel LLP in Miami.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida Case number 4:16-cv-10004