United States v. La Vengeance

United States v. La Vengeance
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued August 10, 1796 Decided August 11, 1796
Full case name	United States v. La Vengeance
Citations	3 U.S. 297 (more) 3 Dall. 297; 1 L. Ed. 610; 1796 U.S. LEXIS 402
Case history
Prior	Error from the Circuit Court for the District of New York
Holding
A proceeding by the United States to forfeit a vessel is a cause of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, and courts will take judicial notice of a geographical fact.
Court membership
Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth Associate Justices James Wilson · William Cushing James Iredell · William Paterson Samuel Chase
Case opinion
Majority	Elsworth, joined by unanimous

United States v. La Vengeance, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 297 (1796), was a 1796 decision of the United States Supreme Court which found that a proceeding by the United States to forfeit a vessel is a cause of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction. Specifically, "[a]n injunction to enforce the forfeiture of a vessel, for an illegal exportation of arms and ammunition, is a civil cause of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction. The courts will take judicial notice of a geographical fact."^[1]

• Text of United States v. La Vengeance, 3 U.S. (3 Dall.) 297 (1796) is available from: Justia Library of Congress OpenJurist