Is it a house or a boat? -- U.S. Supreme Court to decide case of Riviera Beach houseboat
Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
Updated: 6:35 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012
Posted: 3:08 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012
RIVIERA BEACH — The U.S. Supreme Court agreed Tuesday to hear the case of whether former Riviera Beach Marina tenant Fane Lozman's houseboat constitutes a "vessel" under maritime law.
In April 2009, Lozman watched federal marshals tow his two-story houseboat away from the city marina with his possessions on board. It was towed to the Miami River and later destroyed.
The city said Lozman failed to sign a dockage agreement that requires vessels moored at the marina to be registered, insured and capable of leaving the marina in case of an emergency.
Lozman claims his 57-foot houseboat was a "floating home" with no engines and no boat registration, and didn't meet the definition of a vessel.
"It was a square box," Lozman said. "It was just designed to sit in the water and float."
Lozman lost his case in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta.
Subsequently, he hired Stanford University law professor Jeffrey Fisher to take his case to the Supreme Court.
In the petition to the Supreme Court, attorneys for Lozman argued that other appellate courts have applied different standards in deciding whether a floating structure is considered a "vessel."
Lozman, 50, a financial software developer and former U.S. Marine Corps pilot, said his case is expected to be heard by the Supreme Court in October.
"I'm really grateful the Supreme Court agreed to hear my case," Lozman said. "I'm very humbled."
City Attorney Pamala Ryan said Jules Massee of the Tampa firm Hamilton, Miller and Birthisel, which specializes in admiralty and maritime law, will continue to represent the city in the houseboat case.
Ryan said the city looks forward to the Supreme Court resolving the issue of what constitutes a vessel.
"We believe the 11th Circuit's interpretation of the law is on point," she wrote, "and we are confident in our ability to successfully argue that position in front of the Supreme Court."
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