Boating season is upon us. With the warmer weather, you can get on the lakes and rivers and thoroughly enjoy your Minnesota summer. Something that you will want to keep in mind is that some of these are going to be considered navigable waters, as defined by the federal government, which means it is not going to be Minnesota State law that applies here. It is going to be federal or maritime law.
The big issue is going to be a shortened statute of limitations. Federal law has a three-year statute of limitations for a boating accident injury, whereas Minnesota has a six-year statute of limitations most of the time for an injury caused by negligence, like in a car accident. If you are going to court, you are going to find yourself in federal court, and those federal or maritime laws are going to apply.
For the most part, if you are just trying to come to a settlement with another party, it is going to be an informal conversation with their insurance company. It is a situation where if it is obvious who is at fault, it should resolve out of court.
