Glass v. The Sloop Betsey

Glass v. The Sloop Betsey
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued February 8, 10–12, 1794 Decided February 18, 1794
Full case name	Alexander S. Glass, et al., Appellants v. The Sloop Betsey, et al.
Citations	3 U.S. 6 (more) 3 Dall. 6; 1 L. Ed. 485; 1794 U.S. LEXIS 103
Holding
U.S. Courts have the exclusive right to hear admiralty cases in the U.S.
Court membership
Chief Justice John Jay Associate Justices James Wilson · William Cushing John Blair Jr. · James Iredell William Paterson
Case opinion
Majority	Jay, joined by unanimous

Glass v. The Sloop Betsey, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 6 (1794), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that French consuls in the United States cannot hear cases to determine the property rights of foreign ships captured by French vessels and brought into American ports. In this case Glass was an American shareholder in a captured Swedish vessel and sued to determine his rights in District Court. The Supreme Court determined that the District Courts of the United States have the exclusive right to hear admiralty cases.

Subsequent developments

After this opinion, Chief Justice John Jay received praise for his decision and was sent to Europe to negotiate a treaty regarding admiralty rights. Upon his return, he was elected Governor of New York and left the high court.

External links

• Text of Glass v. The Sloop Betsey, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 6 (1794) is available from: Google Scholar  Justia  Library of Congress