Yamamoto seeks shared payment of custodial fees for M/V Luta

A Japanese investor who is suing Lt. Gov. Victor Hocog and the operators of M/V Luta for allegedly refusing to pay back the $3.4 million that he put up for the vessel said he should not be the only one paying for the vessel’s custodian fees.

Takahisa Yamamoto, through counsel George Lloyd Hasselback, said that everyone who is seeking to intervene in his lawsuit should also share in paying for the custodian fees.

The vessel’s custodian, National Maritime Services Inc., asked the court early this week to require Yamamoto to pay $82,463.33 for custodian services from October to December 2016.

The U.S. Marshal Service seized M/V Luta soon after Yamamoto filed the lawsuit last Oct. 25 and appointed National Maritime Services to be its custodian.

Yamamoto, through Hasselback, asked the federal court yesterday not to order him to immediately pay custodian services for the ship.

Two companies and crew- members of M/V Luta have joined as intervenors in the lawsuit.

Norton Lilly, an Alabama corporation, recently sought to collect $131,801.10 from M/V Luta, in alleged unpaid goods and services.

The captain and six other crewmembers of M/V Luta have also alleged that they have not been paid wages in the minimum of $183,647.77.

Long Consulting LLC, a limited liability company, also claims to have a maritime lien on M/V Luta after the vessel’s owners allegedly failed to repay their $300,000 loan.

In Yamamoto’s response to National Maritime Services’ demand of immediate payment, Hasselback said they oppose it in that it would place the entire burden of immediate payment solely upon Yamamoto.

Hasselback cited that Local Admiralty Rule 11(b) states that “an intervenor shall owe a debt to any party that has previously advanced funds to cover the expenses of the marshal, enforceable on motion, consisting of the intervenor’s share of the marshal’s fees and expenses in the proportion that the intervenor’s claim bears to the sum of all the claims.”

Hasselback said the various intervenors bear a degree of responsibility for the payment of custodial fees proportional to their claims upon the vessel.

Furthermore, the lawyer said, the intervenors owe a debt to Yamamoto for a share of custodial fees advanced to date proportional to their claims upon M/V Luta.

Hasselback said he has sought contribution from the intervenors, but has been informed that they will contest the reasonableness of the fees charged by NMS.

Hasselback said it is his understanding that NMS will be altering its request for fees by seeking payment from Yamamoto and not any of the other intervenors.

Therefore, Hasselback said, significant questions regarding what is actually owed NMS, and who is immediately responsible for payment, will likely be brought before the court.

The lawyer said the onus of the continued custody of the vessel should not be placed solely upon Yamamoto, given that Admiralty Rules clearly distributes the responsibility for the timely payment of custodial fees amongst the various parties claiming an interest in the proceeds of the sale of M/V Luta.

Should the intervenors wish to contest the reasonableness of these fees, there should be adequate time for them to brief these issues, Hasselback said.

Yamamoto on Wednesday asked the court to order the sale of M/V Luta to avoid its deterioration and excessive cost of keeping the vessel while his lawsuit is pending in court.