46 U.S.C. § 40902 — Financial responsibility

(a) In General
No one may advertise, present themselves, or act as an ocean transportation intermediary^* unless they provide a bond, proof of insurance, or other surety. It must be in a form and amount the Federal Maritime Commission decides is enough to guarantee financial responsibility, and issued by a surety company the Secretary of the Treasury finds acceptable.

(b) Scope of Financial Responsibility
This bond, insurance, or surety must be available to: (1) pay any penalty assessed under section 41109 or any reparation order under section 41305; (2) pay valid claims against the intermediary arising from its shipping-related work, either with the intermediary's consent (subject to the surety company's review) or when the surety company decides the claim is valid after the intermediary fails to respond to proper notice; and (3) pay court judgments for damages arising from the intermediary's shipping-related work, but only after the claimant has first tried to resolve the claim under (2) and it remains unresolved after a reasonable time.

(c) Regulations on Court Judgments
The Commission must write regulations protecting claimants, intermediaries, and surety companies when claims against these bonds, insurance, or sureties go through court judgments. Those regulations must ensure a damages judgment can only be enforced to the extent the damages come from the intermediary's shipping-related activities, as the Commission defines them.

(d) Resident Agent
An intermediary not based in the United States must name a U.S. resident agent to receive legal papers, such as subpoenas, on its behalf.