Maritime accidents generally occur on a ship in navigable waters. Crew members who are assigned to a vessel may be considered seamen who are entitled to sue their employer’s for the negligence of their employers under a law called the “Jones Act.” Most employees are only entitled to recover Worker’s Compensation when they get hurt at work due to the negligence of their employers. The Jones Act represents an exception to this rule.
There are many complexities involved in maritime accidents. Establishing that a person is in fact a Jones Act seaman under the law can be challenging. And, there are some very old laws that ship owners may try to hide behind to limit the payment of damages to injured seamen. To get around these old law defenses, it may be necessary to show that the involved vessel was “unseaworthy” under the legal definition that applies to these cases.
This often involves hiring experts in maritime safety and seaworthiness to establish that a certain condition on a vessel rose to the level of making that vessel unseaworthy. And even if the injured person is not a member of a crew, the general maritime laws can be difficult to navigate.
This does not even take into account the difficulty of the medical issues involved from the injuries sustained in a maritime accident. We have experience health care providers (nurse and doctor) on our staff that can help us determine the full extent of injuries that may otherwise seem minimal.
Our team has extensive experience and success in handling these cases. We recovered over tens of millions of dollars in these cases. Let us help you if you or a family member has been injured in a maritime accident.