1. Maritime Liens

A person providing necessaries to a vessel on the order of the owner or a person authorized by the owner (1) has a maritime lien on the vessel and (1) may bring a civil action in rem to enforce the lien. See 46 U.S.C.A. § 31342. While Supplemental Rule C provides that a person may also proceed in personam against any person who may be liable, the Courts have held that only an admiralty court acting in rem can foreclose a maritime lien. See Chase Manhattan Financial Services, Inc., v. McMillian, 896 F.2d 452, 456-57 (10th Cir., 1990) (“Only an admiralty court action in rem can foreclose a maritime lien, because admiralty law engages in the fiction that the ship itself is the ‘person’ who committed the offense and is legally responsible for the consequences.”); See also Marlen C. Robb & Son Boatyard & Marina, Inc., v. Vessel Bristol, 893 F.Supp. 526, 537 (E.D.N.C. 1994) (Under the (Maritime Lien) Act, a maritime lien can be enforced only through a civil action in rem.)