U.S. Lawsuits Target Carnival in Italy Cruise Crash

Hundreds of passengers from the stricken Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia and up to 1,000 businesses on the island where it ran aground are pressing ahead with lawsuits in the U.S. against Miami-based Carnival Corp., the world’s largest cruise line.

The lawsuits contend Carnival is the corporate parent and is ultimately responsible for any violations or negligence that may have led to the deadly Jan. 13 accident. Investigators say the ship rammed a reef while passing too close to an island off Italy’s Tuscan coast, killing 32 people.

Carnival contends the Italian Costa line is a separate corporate entity and that lawsuits should be filed only in Italy.

At least four lawsuits have been filed on behalf of passengers. Another is on behalf of about 1,000 Italian businesses who say the wreck hurt tourism. In total, the lawsuits seek tens of millions of dollars in damages.

“Costa Cruise Lines is the alter ego of Carnival,” said Edward Ricci, whose lawsuit seeks to represent Giglio Island tourist-related businesses that claim the disaster deterred visitors, polluted environmentally sensitive local waters and depressed property values.

Even though the Costa Crociere subsidiary is based in Genoa, Italy, and the Concordia itself never sailed to a U.S. port, Ricci contends that it and Carnival’s other brands all answer to its Miami headquarters. Carnival, he noted, announced a company-wide audit of safety practices after the disaster that is being overseen by Miami-based executives.

“It is from this headquarters that the tragic crash of the Costa Concordia could have been prevented by insisting on better training of officers, safer operation and navigation of ships, and elimination of the reckless practice of `sail-by salutes,”‘ Ricci said in court papers, referring to evidence that the Concordia’s captain sailed too close to the island on purpose for publicity and to impress passengers.

Similar claims are made in at least four other lawsuits, one of them filed last week that represents 155 passengers from 14 countries, including the U.S.

A Carnival spokeswoman said the company would not comment on pending litigation beyond its court filings.

In those documents, Carnival contends that the Italian Costa line is a separate corporate entity and that any lawsuits should be filed in Italy. Lawyers for Carnival say the company does not own the Concordia and does not manage Costa’s day-to-day activities.

“This is an Italian dispute and should be tried in an Italian court,” said Thad Dameris, representing Carnival in the case involving Giglio Island businesses. “This case has no real connection to the United States.”

Still, the companies are closely intertwined. Costa Crociere is a subsidiary of London-based Carnival plc, which appears on the surface to be separate from the Miami-based Carnival. Yet they share the same top executives and board of directors and “operate as a single economic enterprise,” according to Carnival’s court filings. And Costa Cruise Lines Inc. is based in Florida and issued statements after the accident.

Attorneys suing Carnival claim Italian courts often take years longer than their U.S. counterparts to deal with similar lawsuits and that there is no method of bringing a class action in Italy, as the Giglio Island businesses want.

Gabrielle D’Alemberte, who represents five U.S. citizens suing over the accident, said Italy also does not allow attorneys to work on a contingency fee basis, in which the lawyer’s fee comes out of any settlement or verdict. She also said damages for pain and suffering and emotional distress are harder to collect.

“This was traumatizing at every level,” she said. “That’s a cause of action in this country. It’s not in Italy.”

Carnival contends that everything to do with Costa Crociere, the Concordia disaster and subsequent investigations is much more readily available in Italy, including witnesses, documents and other evidence.

None of the lawsuits is close to going to trial.

Meanwhile, the ship itself remains on its side just off the Italian island. Italian officials say they expect it to be upright and floating again by spring of 2013. In addition, an Italian court on Oct. 15 is scheduled to hold a preliminary hearing on potential charges against those responsible for the shipwreck.

Capt. Francesco Schettino has said he was distracted by a cellphone call and that his decision to move the ship into shallower waters likely saved lives.