Aqua Log, Inc. v. Georgia

BLACK, Circuit Judge:

This appeal arises from two in rem admiralty actions filed by Appellee Aqua Log, Inc. (Aqua Log) seeking to salvage logs lying at the bottom of Georgia’s rivers. Appellant the State of Georgia intervened as an interested party and alerted the courts to its claim to ownership of the logs. In each case, Georgia filed a motion to dismiss, arguing the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction because the Eleventh Amendment prohibited a federal court from adjudicating its interest in the logs. The district courts denied Georgia’s motions to dismiss, holding Georgia could not…