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| | Nicholas Johnson, Admiralty and Cyberlaw |
 | | Although the “Pied Poudre” courts, held primarily for the settlement of disputes at English fairs and markets, also had special jurisdiction of seamen's cases, it is probable that the first English tribunals to apply maritime law, with the Rolls of Oléron as a basis, were the courts of the Cinque Ports. |
 | | However, he is free to sue in a state court, unless the defendant is a citizen of another state, in which case the suit may be tried as an ordinary civil action in the district court. |
 | | Although admiralty actions are frequently brought in personam, against individual or corporate defendants only, the most distinctive feature of admiralty practice is the proceeding in rem, against maritime property, that is, a vessel, a cargo, or “freight,” which in shipping means the compensation to which a carrier is entitled for the carriage of cargo. |
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