The first paragraph sums this unusual case up:

Under Texas law, a social host has no duty to prevent someone from drinking and driving. But in this case, the driver became intoxicated on a small, chartered fishing boat during a business retreat, and plaintiffs contend that their action against the host is governed by federal maritime law, which, they argue, would recognize liability. For maritime law to apply, the action must fall within admiralty jurisdiction, and under the tests prescribed by the United States Supreme Court in Jerome B. Grubart, Inc. v. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., it does not.

The Court examined whether the activity in question (drinking by guests on a small fishing boat) "posed [no] more than a fanciful risk to commercial shipping." Nor did the Court view this as a traditional maritime activity that warrants the uniformity of a federal maritime law to avoid inconsistent state laws. Instead, it suggested, applying maritime law here might have the opposite effect by drawing "a distinction between [proper social host culpability for] business retreats at hunting lodges and those at fishing lodges when in fact there is none."