Merchant Royal

http://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/florida/flmdce/8:2007cv00614/197978/61/0.html

On Nov. 2, 2007 Judge Merryday ordered a preliminary pretrial and scheduling conference to be held on Nov. 26, 2007. It is also ordered that all parties shall be prepared to discuss the following:

1) the basis of federal jurisdiction including any motions that will be filed by Spain.
2) each party's Case Management Report
3) subjects numbered in Fed R. Civ.P. 16.

On or before 11/11/07 Odyssey Marine shall answer in writing the following Interrogatories:

1) the basis of federal jurisdiction
2) the injuries or damages that Odyssey incurred by Spain actions
3) the names of all persons with a financial interest in this action
4) a list of all motions that Odyssey plans to file.

On or before 11/21/07 Spain shall answer in writing the following Interrogatories:

1) a statement that Spain is the proper defendant or, if not, who is the proper defendant
2) a list of all laws, codes, regulations and legal principles which are applicable to this action.
3) a detailed factual basis for the defenses that Spain asserts in their answer.
4) a statement that all proper parties have been joined or, if not, the names of the other parties.
5) a list of all motions that Spain plans to file.

I felt funny making a Title like that but that is exactly what Spain did.
Not that I blame them.

Not much is going on except the court cases in the three arrested sites.
One of the three should turn out to be the "Black Swan" site.
The other's are the Land's End site (Merchant Royal?) and the Ancona.

Here is Spain's reply to Odyssey's Response to.........etc.

http://docs.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/florida/flmdce/8:2007cv00614/197978/62/0.html

In a nutshell Spain says:

1) Spain's motion to dismiss Odyssey's claims is not defective and should be granted because Odyssey failed to meet it's pleading obligations.

2) Odyssey ignored or misinterpreted the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act on Jurisdiction over In Personam claims against Spain.

A Preliminary Pretrial Conference is set for 11/26/2007.

TAMPA, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Odyssey Marine Exploration (NASDAQ:OMEX - News), the world’s leader in the field of deep-ocean shipwreck exploration, today filed a quarterly report with the Securities and Exchange Commission detailing results of the Company's third quarter 2007.

For the third quarter of 2007, Odyssey reported revenue of $1.3 million, compared to $.6 million in the third quarter 2006. The Company reported a net loss of $5.4 million, compared to a net loss of $6.2 million for the third quarter of 2006. The net loss per share for the third quarter was $.11, compared to $.13 per share in the third quarter 2006.

"We are pleased to report an increase in revenue during the third quarter of 2007 compared to the previous year. While revenue numbers are still not where we would like them to be, we are continuing to add additional sales channels and marketing programs which we anticipate will have a positive effect on our revenues in the future. In spite of the additional expenses associated with the Black Swan recovery earlier this year, overall expenses have not increased. Following the recent safe departure of our second vessel from Gibraltar after having been effectively blockaded by Spain for several months, we are now looking forward to putting both ships back to work,” said John C. Morris, Odyssey’s Chief Executive Officer.

Full Report: http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/071107/20071107006637.html?.v=1

The 3rd quarter report contained an update to the 'Admiralty Legal Proceedings' which is getting pretty complex. The report summed it up as follows:

Admiralty Legal Proceedings

On April 9, 2007, Odyssey filed Admiralty arrests in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida on two sites, one in the Atlantic Ocean and one in the western Mediterranean Sea. The Company has now arrested three sites (the first of which was arrested on September 13, 2006) that require more extensive ROV operations.

On May 30 and 31, 2007, the Kingdom of Spain filed notices in all three pending court cases in which we have filed Warrants of Arrest stating that the Spanish government does not intend to give up rights on any Spanish property which might be on the sites. Spain has not asserted a basis for any claims specific to any of the arrests.

On June 15 and 19, 2007, Spain filed Motions for More Definite Statements in these three admiralty arrests requesting additional information.

On August 6, 2007, we filed our responses including Amended Verified Complaints adding the Kingdom of Spain as a defendant in all three Admiralty cases, seeking damages for losses sustained through Spain's recent actions obstructing Odyssey's ability to conduct operations. Odyssey is seeking not only relief in the form of a set-off of any potential award Spain may ultimately receive, but also affirmative relief for damages caused by Spain's interference with Odyssey's rights to all three arrested sites. In addition to the Amended Complaints, we also filed Motions for Protective Order in all three cases to protect the confidentiality of the Preliminary Site Assessments, which include detailed information about the archaeological and exploration activities at the sites to date, and filed Motions for Preliminary Injunction in two of the cases.

On September 19, 2007, Spain filed Motions to Dismiss the Amended Complaints and Oppositions to the Motions for Orders Granting Preliminary Injunctions and Protective Orders. Odyssey filed its Response to the Motions to Dismiss and Replies to Spain's Oppositions to the Motions for Protective Orders and Preliminary Injunctions on October 22, 2007.

On October 30, 2007, the parties filed Joint Case Management Reports. Those reports indicated Spain's opposition to complying with the Federal Rules of Discovery. They also provided a general guideline for the timing of discovery and trials and requested hearings before the court to resolve disputed issues. The parties will appear before the court on November 26, 2007 for Preliminary Pretrial Conferences in all arrest cases. We continue to pursue a prompt resolution to these claims. If we are able to confirm that any entity has a potential legitimate legal claim to any of the materials recovered from these sites, when-and if-the identity is confirmed, we intend to provide legal notice to any and all potential claimants. Even if another entity is able to prove that it has an ownership interest in the shipwreck and/or cargo and that they had not legally abandoned the shipwreck, Odyssey would apply for a salvage award from the Admiralty Court. In cases such as this, salvors are typically awarded up to 90% of the recovery. We do believe that most shipwrecks that we recover, including the "Black Swan," will likely result in claims by other parties. Many of these may be spurious claims, but we anticipate that there might be some legitimate ones as well. In the case of the "Black Swan," it is the opinion of our legal counsel that even if a claim by another party is deemed to be legitimate by the courts, Odyssey should still receive a significant salvage award for its recovery.

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The next important date is 11/26/07, which is the date of the hearing. Also, there should be answers to the court interrogatories on 11/11/07 by Odyssey and on 11/21/07 by Spain (see previous post: 'Order Scheduling Pretrial Conference').

PLAINTIFF' S INTERROGATORY #2
Describe in detail the injuries or damages incurred by plaintiff and the specific acts or
omissions by the defendant which have allegedly caused the injuries or damages.

"On October 16, 2007, the Odyssey Explorer attempted to depart the port in Gibraltar and was similarly intercepted, and under threat of force was diverted to the Spanish port of Algeciras, Spain, against the will of the Master. Spanish officials even violated their own "secret order" which Odyssey has since learned allowed boarding only upon consent of the Master or, if withheld, upon consent of the flag state. The Master was also arrested and detained, and although released, he remains under court order to appear in Algeciras each month, apparently in perpetuity. Although Spanish officials again found absolutely no evidence of any wrongdoing by Odyssey, and although the Explorer was released on October 20, 2007, Odyssey's equipment including the ROV (Remotely Operated Vehicle) used in Odyssey's search and recovery projects was sealed, and despite the lack of any written order, Odyssey has been instructed not to remove the tape which binds the ROV under threat of arrest, and, in effect, attaches it to the Explorer, thus denying Odyssey access to its own equipment for use in exercising the very rights granted to it by this Court to continue operations at the Defendant site.

In addition to the forgoing, Spain has intimidated and interfered with some of Odyssey's researchers in Spain, making them fearful to provide services to Odyssey and limiting their ability to work on projects for Odyssey. Odyssey's damages as a result of Spain's tortuous conduct are extensive. At the date of this filing, Odyssey estimates its damages caused by Spain's active interference with Odyssey's civil liberties, business operations and possessor rights to be over Five Million Dollars ($5 000 000.00). Those damages have been carefully documented and may be broken down generally as follows:

Interrption of Service of Vessels and Lost Opportunity...........................$4,560 000

Marine Equipment.............................................................................$ 164,000
(Equipment Odyssey was unable to retrieve due to
Spain's illegal blockade, and damages caused by
Spanish officials to vessel equipment upon capture)

Freight................................................................................................$ 52,000
(Costs to move equipment)

Contractual Losses................................................................................$ 170,000
(Forfeited production work and
expenses incurred from cancellation)

Travel and Legal Expenses.......................................................................$ 65,000

Loss of Use of Research Services..............................................................$ 121,000
(Researchers)

Artifact Detention................................................................................(Uncalculated)
(Artifacts detained in Gibraltar due
to Spanish Order - likely suffering
deterioration)

Odyssey will also present "damage" evidence in this case regarding the costs associated with the recovery and the proper archaeological conservation of the Defendant Site and artifacts therefrom. Such evidence will be related to Odyssey's custodial obligations and salvage claim."

http://www.bradenton.com/331/story/232357.html

In a court hearing on Monday, Nov. 26, Judge Mark Pizzo urged both sides to work out the details to a confidentiality agreement that would allow Odyssey Marine Exploration to disclose details about the shipwreck and the treasure to Spanish officials, while keeping the information out of the public eye.

"The message was loud and clear in the courtroom today that they've got to start revealing the information that we've been asking them to provide," Goold said after the hearing.

Odyssey co-chairman Greg Stemm said the offer of disclosure with an attached confidentiality agreement has been on the table for some time, but the details couldn't be worked out.

Pizzo acknowledged that it may be difficult to develop the agreement because of questions about how sanctions would be levied by a federal court in the United States if the pact was violated by Spanish officials.

Still, Pizzo asked both sides to report to him by Dec. 7 on their progress toward the confidentiality agreement, and he set another pretrial hearing for Jan. 10.

Pizzo also told Odyssey officials that while the agreement may protect the details of the wreck site, they may have to "bite the bullet" when it comes to other information about the treasure possibly getting out.

Stemm has complained that the company has been unfairly portrayed as modern-day pirates looting archeologically significant shipwrecks for profit, a reputation that has been perpetuated in the European press.

It is routine for other countries or parties to challenge treasure finds in U.S. federal court if they believe they have a claim, he said, and the judge will ultimately decide if the claim has merit.