Lugenbuhl shareholder David Sharpe has contributed a chapter to the latest edition of the venerable multi-volume treatise Moore’s Federal Practice (3d ed. 2019), published by Matthew Bender Elite Products.

Sharpe’s chapter, titled “Removal of Admiralty & Maritime Actions,” is included in Volume 29 – Admiralty and comprises 38 pages and more than 325 footnotes. The annual update is a comprehensive examination of how and when a defendant may “remove” to federal court an admiralty or maritime case that was originally filed in state court. 

As Sharpe explains in the chapter’s introduction, “removal to admiralty” refers to the removal of a maritime action from state court to federal court under the admiralty jurisdiction. While maritime actions can be removed to federal court under federal-question and diversity jurisdiction, there remains an unsettled question on whether a maritime action removed from state court can survive a motion to remand, when the federal court’s only basis of concurrent subject-matter jurisdiction is admiralty. Sharpe’s chapter examines this question in detail.

An essential part of any federal litigator’s library, Moore’s Federal Practice is written by the judges, lawyers, and professors who write and amend the Federal Rules. It is one of the most cited texts in federal court decisions. The first edition was written in 1938 by the late Professor James William Moore, one of the original drafters of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The latest edition, which spans 35 volumes, represents a complete overhaul of the classic work and includes the full text of the federal rules along with extensive commentary and analysis of the rules and cases interpreting the rules. Moore’s Volume 29 – Admiralty covers the litigation process and provides an easy-to-follow guide to practice and procedure of maritime cases. Sharpe’s contribution is contained within chapter 704.

With nearly 30 years of maritime law experience, Sharpe’s practice focuses on risk management in the marine-service market. He has traveled globally to speak about admiralty and maritime issues and serves as a co-author and editor of several publications, including the West Academic casebook, Cases & Materials on Admiralty (6th ed. 2017). In addition to his law practice, he is an adjunct professor at Tulane University Law School. For more information about Sharpe’s experience and extensive accolades, view his profile.