One of the biggest protections is The Jones Act, a federal law that gives seamen injured on the job the right to sue their employer for negligence.
At The Maritime Injury Law Firm, we have 20 years of experience using The Jones Act as a tool in helping injured offshore workers receive justice throughout Louisiana. We know that offshore work is not for the faint of heart, and injuries can be serious. That’s why we go after big, life-changing justice for our clients.
Over the years, thousands of court decisions have interpreted The Jones Act. Its current state reveals an unusually low burden of proof: any negligence on the part of the employer/boat owner that causes or contributes to a crew member’s injury, however slight, is sufficient to base liability.
Under The Jones Act, the injured employee has the right to the following:
By “in navigation,” the law means that in order to qualify, the vessel must be:
The ship or boat does not have to be moving or at sea in order to qualify, but the vessel must be considered seaworthy. (The ship could be docked, for example, in the Gulf Coast.)
This means that the vessel, her crew, equipment, and parts must be reasonably fit (and safe) for their intended use as it pertains to the injured crewmember. Unseaworthiness can arise from insufficient manpower for a task, defective equipment, or an unsafe condition — not that the vessel is about to sink. The boat owner and/or employer is responsible for injuries caused by unseaworthy conditions, whether or not they know about them.
Offshore work can be dangerous, and there are many types of injuries that can occur on the job due to unsafe working conditions, improper training, or even negligence or animosity between workers.
Injuries can range from burns and broken bones to spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and — in the worst cases — death.
If injured, an offshore worker or seaman is entitled to damages often seen in a personal injury case, including compensatory damages.
These damages may include compensation for:
With 20 years of experience with maritime injury cases throughout Louisiana, George knows the pressures placed upon crewmembers to work through injuries and illnesses — and how companies try to downplay those injuries and illnesses to trick workers into taking lowball settlements.
At The Maritime Injury Law Firm, we don’t just look at your current losses. We assess the future losses that you could sustain due to the long term effects of what you’re going through and help to make sure you still get the money you would have earned had you not been injured on the job.
With every case we take on, our job is to turn the system around and make it work in favor of the seaman, and to provide justice for hardworking people in need.
With 20 years of experience with maritime injury cases throughout Louisiana, George knows the pressures placed upon crewmembers to work through injuries and illnesses — and how companies try to downplay those injuries and illnesses to trick workers into taking lowball settlements.
At The Maritime Injury Law Firm, we don’t just look at your current losses. We assess the future losses that you could sustain due to the long term effects of what you’re going through and help to make sure you still get the money you would have earned had you not been injured on the job.
With every case we take on, our job is to turn the system around and make it work in favor of the seaman, and to provide justice for hardworking people in need.
© 2024 The Maritime Injury Law Firm. | 
