Seller in Texas sold a boat claiming it was perfect and had major issues??

This is one of those scenarios where it would seem like maritime law is appropriate, but it probably is not necessary. You have a seemingly simple claim for: 1) breach of contract; 2) intentional misrepresentation; 3) negligent misrepresentation. If the seller knew there was a defect, it is possible that you can get punitive damages, if this were to go to trial. Short of punitive damages, I am not sure many lawyers would take this on contingency. As I am not a TX lawyer and can only give general advice (e.g. not state specific), I would encourage you to look into the TX Small Claims System. If you can sue for up to $10,000, it may be worth while. It is also worth noting that winning in court is relatively easy. The collection part is always hard. I encourage you to look for a TX Maritime Attorney here on .com. You can also go to www.mlaus.org or www.seali.com

I will not attempt to answer this specific as to Texas law. Generally, you may have a claim for fraud in the inducement. You should discuss this with a local attorney who is knowledgeable in the area of vessel transaction law. I would add that a buyer has a duty under the theory of caveat emptor which means "Let the buyer beware!" A bit of advise would be that in the future you never into a buy and sale agreement with a seller unless the vessel purchase is "subject to survey and sea trial" making the entire transaction capable of being cancelled as a result of anything that comes up in the survey or the sea-trial. Good Luck. BoatLawyer

I don't think admiralty will afford you greater protections than the Texas DTPA or standard contract arguements. I assume that this was a used boat, and it sounds like built in fuel tanks need to be replaced. If you can prove that the seller was aware of the bad gas tanks, you may be able to prevail on a DTPA failure to disclose issue. DTPA allows for the you to recover your attorneys fees if you prevail on your lawsuit.