CSL Australia Pty Ltd v Tasmanian Ports Corporation Pty Ltd (The Goliath) [2024] FCA 824, Federal Court of Australia (Justice Stewart), 26 July 2024

Admiralty - Limitation of liability - Limitation of liability for wreck removal claims - Reservation against limitation of claims for the removal of wreck - Two tugs becoming wreck as a result of allision - Removal of wrecks by port authority - Contracts - Standard terms - Whether port's standard terms excluding right to limit liability for removal of wreck - Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims 1976, articles 2(1)(a) and (d) - Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims Act 1989 (Cth)

On 28 January 2022 the motor vessel Goliath, a self-loading bulk cement carrier, allied with two tugs ( York Cove and Campbell Cove) and a wharf owned by the Tasmanian Ports Corporation (TasPorts) in the Port of Devonport, Tasmania. The tugs sank, emitting diesel fuel and other hydrocarbons into the Mersey River.