Blue Whale Corp. v. Grand China Shipping Development Co.

WESLEY, Circuit Judge:

This admiralty law dispute arises from a distinctly international transaction: a Chinese company contracted to transport goods from Brazil to China aboard a Libe rian vessel. The existence of so many foreign interests yields an inherently federal choice-of-law question — one we resolve via application of maritime eonflictsof-law principles.

Background

Plaintiff-Appellant Blue Whale Corporation (“Blue Whale”), a foreign company, 1 entered into a charter party (a maritime contract) with Defendant-Appellee Grand China Shipping Development Company, Ltd. (“Development”), a…