Article III, Section 2, Clause 1:
The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;—to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls;—to all Cases of admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction;—to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party;—to Controversies between two or more States;—between a State and Citizens of another State,—between Citizens of different States,—between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects.
Maritime torts include injuries to persons,1 damages to property arising out of collisions or other negligent acts,2 product liability suits,3 and violent dispossession of property.4 Cases involving tort claims fall within admiralty jurisdiction when two requirements are met: (1) the commission or consummation of the act that gives rise to the claim occurs on navigable waters;5 and (2) the tort bears a significant relationship to traditional maritime activity.6