This section contains the nature of the case and procedural background.

D's tug boat towed a log raft, consisting of bundled logs, into the Multnomah Channel and moored it to pilings adjacent to the shore. The raft was initially secured at both ends along the shore, but two months later, the line securing one end became untied and that end of the raft drifted into the channel. Ps were participants in a bass fishing tournament on October 29, 1988. As they proceeded down the channel in their motorized fishing boats, they each collided with D's drifting log raft. Ps filed a negligence action against D. The district court followed the admiralty principle set forth in The Louisiana shifting the burden of proof from Ps to D and requiring D to demonstrate that it was not negligent in permitting its log raft to become unmoored. The district court concluded that Knappton was negligent in allowing its log raft to drift into the The court held that D was 75 percent responsible and Ps were each 25 percent at fault for failing to maintain a reasonable lookout. D appealed.

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