46 USC 31329 - Court Sales of Documented Vessels

(a) A documented vessel may be sold by order of a district court only to—

(1) a person eligible to own a documented vessel under section 12103 of this title; or

(2) a mortgagee of that vessel.

(b) When a vessel is sold to a mortgagee not eligible to own a documented vessel—

(1) the vessel must be held by the mortgagee for resale;

(2) the vessel held by the mortgagee is subject to chapter 563 of this title; and

(3) the sale of the vessel to the mortgagee is not a sale to a person not a citizen of the United States under section 12132 of this title.

(c) Unless waived by the Secretary of Transportation, a person purchasing a vessel by court order under subsection (a)(1) of this section or from a mortgagee under subsection (a)(2) of this section must document the vessel under chapter 121 of this title.

(d) The vessel may be operated by the mortgagee not eligible to own a documented vessel only with the approval of the Secretary of Transportation.

(e) A sale of a vessel contrary to this section is void.

(f) This section does not apply to a documented vessel that has been operated only for pleasure.

(Pub. L. 100–710, title I, §102(c), Nov. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 4747; Pub. L. 104–324, title XI, §1118, Oct. 19, 1996, 110 Stat. 3973; Pub. L. 109–304, §15(32), Oct. 6, 2006, 120 Stat. 1704; Pub. L. 111–281, title IX, §913(c), Oct. 15, 2010, 124 Stat. 3017.)

Historical and Revision Notes
Revised sectionSource section (U.S. Code)
31329 46:961(f)

Sections:  Previous  31321  31322  31323  31324  31325  31326  31327  31329  31330  31341  31342  31343  40101  40102  40103  Next

Last modified: October 26, 2015