Tag Archives: lawsuit

Virgin Cruises seeks dismissal of Veitch lawsuit

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Virgin Cruises has asked a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit filed in March that alleges it misappropriated the basics of its cruise strategy from Colin Veitch, a former cruise line CEO turned consultant.

In a motion filed June 1, Virgin argues that any agreement between Veitch’s consulting firm and Virgin Management USA falls short of a working partnership that could form the basis of a lawsuit.

In addition, the response says communications between the two parties indicated that a preliminary agreement on how income would be allocated between the partners was subject to later revision. In filing suit, Veitch said that Virgin unilaterally revised the financial terms of the partnership once it realize the potential for profits. At that point, the partnership fell apart, the lawsuit said.

Virgin also asks that the Veitch lawsuit be dismissed because it names a number of Virgin entities as defendants but fails to say what misconduct is attributable to each defendant.

Virgin, which is associated with Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, said in December it will enter the cruise business by building two new “world-class cruise ships.”

The Veitch lawsuit contends that the business outlined by Virgin was based on a plan for “ultra ships” that he presented to Virgin in 2011.

Veitch was Norwegian Cruise Line’s CEO from 2000 to 2008.

South Carolina court throws out lawsuit against Carnival

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By Jerry Limone

The South Carolina Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit alleging that Carnival Cruise Lines’ operations in Charleston violated the city’s nuisance ordinances.

The court ruled that such a lawsuit must be brought by property owners, not neighborhood associations.

In 2011, the Southern Environmental Law Center filed the lawsuit on behalf of four Charleston community groups against Carnival, seeking to “enforce local laws that protect the city’s healthy environment and treasured historic assets.”

The four community groups were the Historic Ansonborough Neighborhood Association, the Charlestowne Neighborhood Association, the Preservation Society of Charleston and the South Carolina Coastal Conservation League.

The court stated, “Lacking from these allegations is any claim that the plaintiffs themselves or their members have suffered from a particularized harm. … These allegations are simply complaints about inconveniences suffered broadly by all persons residing in or passing through the City of Charleston and therefore, plaintiffs fail to establish the first element of standing.”

The South Carolina Ports Authority and the City of Charleston joined the lawsuit on Carnival’s behalf in 2011.

“This was an unprecedented lawsuit brought against a global brand and customer of our port,” said Jim Newsome, president and CEO of the South Carolina Ports Authority. “Given the public interest in this case, we are gratified that the State Supreme Court, in its original jurisdiction, affirms that Carnival has been operating responsibly and lawfully in Charleston at Union Pier Terminal.”

The Southern Environmental Law Center said the ruling “did not address whether Carnival’s home basing operation complies with local ordinances, or whether it is a nuisance that interferes with the property rights of neighboring home owners, as the plaintiffs alleged. “

“We’re disappointed that after two years the court refused to pass on the legality of Carnival’s operation and instead dismissed the case on a legal technicality that the claims should have been brought by individual property owners rather than neighborhood associations and other groups,” said Blan Holman, the Southern Environmental Law Center attorney who represented the plaintiff groups in the lawsuit.

The Carnival Fantasy has sailed Caribbean cruises year-round from Charleston since 2010. The 2,052-passenger ship is Carnival’s oldest, having entered service in 1990.

Carnival chief: CNN report based on ‘frivolous’ suit

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By Tom Stieghorst

In the company’s fourth-quarter conference call for analysts, Carnival Corp. CEO Arnold Donald offered his view of a critical CNN story aired this week.

Donald said the story on the cable channel’s AC360 show was based on documents from a “frivolous” lawsuit Carnival is seeking to dismiss.

“I’m disappointed they got any airtime whatsoever,” Donald said of the report, which concluded that Carnival Cruise Lines officials knew Carnival Triumph had “a propensity for fires.”

The story cited internal Carnival documents produced in trial preparations for Houston attorney Frank Spagnoletti. Segments quoted by CNN suggest that the diesel generator that caught fire was past due for maintenance and out of compliance with international safety rules.

The show also said Carnival’s ticket contract doesn’t warrant that cruises are safe. Donald said that language was picked up in error from a court motion seeking to dismiss the suit and isn’t in the contract.

“We stand behind our product,” he said. “Our ships are safe, our ships are sound, and our ships are seaworthy.”