Cite as: 510 U. S. 443 (1994)
Souter, J., concurring
eral maritime law. That is especially so in light of our recognition in McAllister v. Magnolia Petroleum Co., 357 U. S., at 224-225, that, for practical reasons, a seaman will almost always combine in a single action claims for relief under the Jones Act and general maritime law. It would produce dissonance rather than harmony to hold that his claims for unseaworthiness and maintenance and cure, but not his Jones Act claim, could be dismissed for forum non conveniens.
The Jones Act's treatment of venue lends further support to our conclusion. In Bainbridge v. Merchants & Miners Transp. Co., 287 U. S. 278, 280-281 (1932), we held that although 46 U. S. C. App. § 688(a) contains a venue provision, "venue [in Jones Act cases brought in state court] should . . . [be] determined by the trial court in accordance with the law of the state." The implication of that holding is that venue under the Jones Act is a matter of judicial housekeeping that has been prescribed only for the federal courts. We noted earlier that forum non conveniens is a sort of supervening venue rule—and here again, what is true for venue under the Jones Act should ordinarily be true under maritime law in general. What we have prescribed for the federal courts with regard to forum non conveniens is not applicable to the States.
* * *
Amicus the Solicitor General has urged that we limit our holding, that forum non conveniens is not part of the uniform law of admiralty, to cases involving domestic entities. We think it unnecessary to do that. Since the parties to this suit are domestic entities it is quite impossible for our holding to be any broader.
The judgment of the Supreme Court of Louisiana is
Affirmed.
Justice Souter, concurring.
I join in the opinion of the Court because I agree that in most cases the characterization of a state rule as substantive
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