Without it, American shipping was "at a competitive disadvantage" compared to other maritime countries where similar limitations applied.

The original bill was subsequently amended many times: The 1936 amendment clarified whether the act applied to foreign shipowners; previously, the 1851 Act stated the owner of "any ship or vessel" could limit their liability,[2]: §3  whether domestic or foreign, which was affirmed by an 1876 court decision.

[28] The statute was again invoked on April 1, 2024, when MV Dali owner Grace Ocean Private and crew manager Synergy Marine Group filed a joint petition in the Maryland U.S. District Court to limit their liability to about $43.6 million under the Act,[29] following the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse.

The Deepwater Horizon Survivors' Fairness Act[30] was introduced in the Senate in 2012 and sought to amend the Limitation of Liability Act to make an exception for personal injuries and wrongful death claims related to the explosion and destruction of the Deepwater Horizon oil drilling platform.

[30] Parallel bills were introduced simultaneously in the House and Senate in September 2021 to amend the Limitation of Liability Act.

[33] As originally written, the bills would take effect retroactively to September 2, 2019 and apply to the sinking of MV Conception.