The Adriatic Affair – A Maritime Hit-and-Run
Date: Jun 4, 2025 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Location: New Jersey Law Center, New Brunswick, and Online
Member Price: $159.00
Non-Member Price: $199.00
Section Price: $0.00
Areas of Law: For All Attorneys
Earn up to 3.3 credits! (More Information)
Keynote
Moderator
Presenters
- Matthew T. Charles, Esq.
- Concannon & Charles, PC, Ocean City
- Jennifer N. Sellitti, Esq.
- Attorney and Shipwreck Hunter, Trenton
The American sailing vessel Adriatic collided with the French steamship Le Lyonnais on Nov. 2, 1856, off the coast of Nantucket in what can best be described as a maritime hit-and-run. Adriatic’s captain, Jonathan Durham, rendered no aid and left the passenger steamship to fend for herself. In all, 114 people died in the collision and in the days that followed.
Durham did not count on a hero, French sailor Jean-Marie-Louis Choupault, who helped 18 Le Lyonnais passengers and crew adrift on a small lifeboat in the brutal North Atlantic. Durham continued with business as usual, including delivering a load of timber to France. French authorities seized his ship as damages and put him on trial, but his adventures did not end there. News of his daring escapades made Durham a celebrity in America. The outbreak of the Civil War ended further inquiry into what became known in diplomatic circles as “the Adriatic affair,” and the victims of the disaster never received justice.
In August of 2024, shipwreck hunter and lawyer Jennifer Sellitti, her partner Joe Mazraani, and a team of explorers discovered, dived, and identified the wreckage of Le Lyonnais on the eastern edges of Georges Bank.
Join Sellitti as she presents a keynote on the book, the legal drama surrounding this shipwreck, and the search for and discovery of Le Lyonnais far offshore and in dangerous waters.
Then, attorney Matthew Charles, who has served as counsel to plaintiffs/salvors in admiralty matters for numerous shipwrecks, including Nuestra Señora de Atocha, Santa Margarita, 1715 Fleet, and R.M.S. Titanic, will discuss historic shipwreck salvage.
This will all be tied together with a fascinating look at maritime law and what happens when there’s a hit and run on the high seas.
The book is included in the seminar fee and the morning will end with a Q&A session, meet and greet and book signing.
Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind program!
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