Felix J. Campbell, Jr., and Annette v. Campbell v. Sonat Offshore Drilling, Inc., Union Texas Petroleum Corporation, Defendant-Third Party v. Frank's Casing Crews & Rental Tools, Inc., and Richard Kempton Webb, as Representative of Certain Underwriters at Lloyd's London, Etc., Third Party Felix J. Campbell, Jr., Et Ux v. Union Texas Petroleum Corporation v. Richard Kempton Webb, Etc.
979 F.2d 1115 | Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit | 1992
What This Case Means for Subcontractors
A worker employed by Frank's Casing Crews was injured while transferring between offshore vessels during a drilling operation. The oil company (UTP) and drilling vessel owner (Sonat) sued Frank's for indemnification under their contract. The court ruled that Frank's must indemnify both companies even though Frank's had no direct contract with the vessel owner, based on reciprocal indemnity provisions in the UTP agreement.
Key Takeaways
- •Indemnity clauses in your prime contract can obligate you to cover parties you never directly contracted with—read all flow-down language carefully
- •Maritime indemnity agreements are broadly enforceable; courts will hold you to reciprocal indemnity terms even without direct privity
- •Verify your insurance covers all named indemnitees in the prime contract, not just your direct client, or you face uninsured liability
Frank's is obligated to indemnify UTP and Sonat pursuant to the terms of agreements between UTP and Frank's.
Frequently Asked Question
Can my prime contract force me to indemnify companies I never signed an agreement with?
Yes, if your prime contract contains reciprocal indemnity language. Courts will enforce flow-down provisions that require you to indemnify the prime contractor's clients and partners, even without direct privity. Always review indemnity clauses and ensure your insurance covers all named parties.
Related Cases
Gall v. United States
Appellate courts must review all sentences under an abuse-of-discretion standard regardless of whether they fall inside or outside the Guidelines range, and cannot require extraordinary circumstances to justify sentences outside the range.
Piotrowski v. City of Houston
Municipal liability under § 1983 requires proof of official policy as the moving force; isolated employee misconduct insufficient, and equal protection claim time-barred.
Adarand Constructors, Inc. v. Pena
Federal race-based classifications must be analyzed under strict scrutiny regardless of whether they benefit or burden minorities, and the Fifth Amendment's equal protection obligation equals the Fourteenth Amendment's.
Northeastern Florida Chapter of the Associated General Contractors of America v. City of Jacksonville
An association of contractors has standing to challenge a minority set-aside ordinance without proving any member would have won a contract absent the ordinance; the injury is denial of equal competitive opportunity, not loss of a specific contract.
Fitzgerald v. Advanced Spine Fixation Systems, Inc.
A manufacturer must indemnify an innocent seller for products liability litigation costs under Texas Civil Practice & Remedies Code § 82.002(a), even if the seller did not sell the particular defective product that injured the plaintiff, provided the seller qualifies as a 'seller' under the statute.
In Re Kellogg Brown & Root, Inc.
The Civil Commitment of Sexually Violent Predators Act is civil, not criminal, and does not violate due process even when applied to incompetent defendants.