New Orleans Maritime Injury Lawyer

New Orleans is George Vourvoulias’s home. He earned his Masters Degree in Admiralty from Tulane University Law School, three blocks from the Mississippi River. His office is at 400 Poydras Street in the CBD, steps from the Eastern District of Louisiana federal courthouse where most Jones Act and admiralty cases in this region are tried.

He has practiced maritime law in New Orleans for 20 years.

This is not a satellite office. This is not a Texas firm with a New Orleans phone number. When you hire The Maritime Injury Law Firm, you are hiring a New Orleans attorney who knows the local maritime industry, the local courts, the local judges, and the local employers your case will be fought against.

Call (504) 584-6300 — free and confidential, 24/7. No fee unless we win.

New Orleans and Maritime Law — A City Built on the Water

New Orleans is arguably the most important maritime city in the United States. The Port of New Orleans, Port NOLA, handles containerized cargo, break-bulk freight, bulk commodities, and cruise ship operations across more than 180 piers, docks, and wharves on both sides of the Mississippi River. The Port of South Louisiana, just upriver, is the largest port by tonnage in the Western Hemisphere.

The water level in New Orleans fluctuates nearly 20 feet between high and low stages of the Mississippi River, a hydraulic reality that demands harbor pilots and Jones Act seamen who genuinely know the river. The current, the bends, the Algiers Lock, the Industrial Canal Lock connecting the Mississippi to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway and Lake Pontchartrain, these are not abstractions. They are the daily working environment of thousands of New Orleans maritime workers.

New Orleans is also the administrative and operational center of the Gulf of Mexico offshore industry. Energy producers, oilfield service companies, maritime equipment suppliers, vessel operators, ship repair facilities, freight forwarders, barge fleeting operations, and cruise lines all have significant presences in the city. The maritime economy of New Orleans directly and indirectly employs tens of thousands of people across the metro area. 

When something goes wrong on the water, on the river, in the port, or in the Gulf, the injured workers who end up in federal court in New Orleans deserve a lawyer who is at home in that courthouse.

The Maritime Injury Law Firm - Representing Offshore Workers - crew member

New Orleans Maritime Workers We Represent

Every type of maritime worker who calls the New Orleans area home is a potential client of The Maritime Injury Law Firm. The specific law that applies depends on the worker’s role and where the injury occurred, but every category of worker below has real legal rights, and real recovery available.

Tugboat and towboat crew on the Mississippi River

The Mississippi River above and below New Orleans carries some of the densest commercial barge traffic in the world. Tugboats and towboats operating in the New Orleans reach of the river, navigating the bends at Carrollton and Chalmette, transiting the Algiers Lock, managing tow alongside at Port NOLA, face constant hazards. Deckhands, engineers, and tankermen injured on Mississippi River vessels are Jones Act seamen with full maritime law protections. George tried a $1,600,000 verdict for a deckhand who was the sole survivor of a river collision that killed three crewmates.

Port NOLA longshoremen and harbor workers

Workers who load and unload vessels at Port NOLA, operate cargo handling equipment at the terminal facilities, perform ship repair and maintenance at the docks, or work in other shore-based maritime roles are typically covered by the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA). The LHWCA provides medical benefits, wage replacement, and the right to sue third parties, including vessel owners, whose negligence contributed to the injury. Port NOLA’s containerized cargo operations, cruise ship terminals, and bulk commodity facilities all generate regular LHWCA claims.

Offshore workers based in New Orleans

A significant portion of the Gulf of Mexico offshore workforce lives in the New Orleans metro area, in Jefferson Parish, St. Bernard Parish, Plaquemines Parish, and across the Northshore. These workers fly out from Louis Armstrong Airport, or stage through Port Fourchon, or operate from vessels based at the Industrial Canal and Harvey Canal facilities. When they are injured on drillships, OSVs, jack-up rigs, liftboats, or semi-submersibles in the Gulf, their cases come home to New Orleans, specifically to the Eastern District of Louisiana federal courthouse where George has appeared for 20 years.

Commercial fishermen and bayou communities

New Orleans is surrounded by the fishing communities of St. Bernard Parish, Plaquemines Parish, and the parishes to the west and south. Shrimpers, oystermen, crabbers, and finfish harvesters who work out of Delacroix, Yscloskey, Empire, Grand Isle, and other South Louisiana communities are Jones Act seamen. Their injuries, gear entanglement, capsizing, falls overboard, equipment failures on aging vessels, are covered by maritime law regardless of the size of the vessel or the employer.

Shipyard workers

The New Orleans area has several shipbuilding and ship repair facilities along the river. Workers injured in these facilities, through welding accidents, crane and rigging failures, confined space incidents, falls, and toxic chemical exposure, are typically covered by the LHWCA. Asbestos-related occupational disease claims from former New Orleans-area shipyard workers remain an active area of maritime litigation.

Dredge and tank vessel workers

Dredges operate continuously throughout Louisiana’s waterway system — maintaining navigation channels on the Mississippi River, the GIWW, and the port approaches that keep commercial traffic moving. Dredge workers are Jones Act seamen. Tank vessels, petroleum tankers and chemical tankers, operate regularly through Port NOLA and along the river corridor. Tankermen and crew aboard these vessels face specific hazards from toxic cargo exposure, fire and explosion risk during transfer operations, and the physical demands of working on large, complex vessels with demanding watch schedules.

New Orleans Maritime Employers We've Fought Against

Over 20 years of practice in this city, George has handled cases against the employers that dominate New Orleans’s maritime economy.

If you work for any of these companies and were injured, you are not facing an unfamiliar opponent:

This is not an exhaustive list. If your employer is not listed here, that does not affect your rights or George’s ability to represent you.

Your Rights Under Louisiana Maritime Law

The specific legal framework that applies to your injury depends on your job, your vessel, and where you were injured. Here is a brief overview — and links to the full pages for each.

The Jones Act — for seamen

If you qualify as a Jones Act seaman, spending at least 30% of your work time aboard a vessel in navigation, you can sue your employer for negligence under the lowest causation standard in American law, receive maintenance and cure as an absolute right, and pursue unseaworthiness claims against the vessel owner.

The LHWCA — for longshoremen and harbor workers

If you work at Port NOLA or another New Orleans maritime facility in a shore-based role, you are likely covered by the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. The LHWCA provides medical and wage benefits and preserves your right to sue third parties whose negligence caused your injury.

OCSLA — for fixed platform and OCS workers

Workers injured on fixed offshore platforms on the Outer Continental Shelf, those who don’t qualify as Jones Act seamen, are covered by the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), which applies federal maritime law to their claims. New Orleans-area workers injured on fixed platforms during Gulf operations, or during helicopter or vessel transport to or from those platforms, may have OCSLA claims alongside or instead of Jones Act claims.

What to Do After a Maritime Injury in New Orleans

  1. Report in writing immediately. File a written injury report describing every unsafe condition that contributed. If injured at sea, ensure the incident is recorded in the vessel’s official log.
  2. Photograph everything. The scene, the equipment, your injuries. Get witness names and contact information before the vessel departs or the dock crew disperses.
  3. Do not give a recorded statement. The employer’s adjuster will contact you quickly. They work for the company. Do not speak with them before calling an attorney.
  4. Choose your own doctor. You have a legal right to independent medical care. Do not rely exclusively on a company-directed physician.
  5. Call before signing anything. Call (504) 584-6300 before signing any document from your employer or their insurer.
  6. Come in. George’s office is at 400 Poydras St., Suite 1680-C, in the heart of the CBD, accessible from anywhere in the metro area. The consultation is free and confidential.
The Maritime Injury Law Firm - Representing Offshore Workers - Jones Act tugboat

Results for New Orleans Maritime Workers

Neal v. International Offshore Services, LLC — Jury Verdict: $1,600,000. Deckhand on the Mississippi River, sole survivor of a vessel collision. George secured a settlement covering the client for the rest of his working life.

Akers v. The Columns Hotel, et al — Jury Verdict: $2,200,000 in favor of the plaintiff.

Magnolia Financial Group, LLC v. Kenneth Antos, et al — Judgment: $3,000,000 including $950,000 fraud judgment plus attorney’s fees.

Edwin J. Turcios v. LaPorte Plumbing & Heating — Cash Settlement: $442,725 following two surgeries and insurer refusal to pay for the second.

Full results

What New Orleans Maritime Workers Say

"George represented me when I got injured working on a tow boat. The company was playing pretty rough with me, but George was able to get them to provide my medical care and got me a large settlement. If you work on boats, like I do, I recommend George Vourvoulias if you are looking for a lawyer who knows maritime law."

— Curtis Watson, Lead Deckhand

"I was working on the Mississippi River as a deckhand when we were collided with by an upbound vessel pushing 40 barges. I was the only survivor. I hired George Vourvoulias and he went to work right away. He listened to my story and came up with a plan on how to deal with the insurance companies and the big boat owners. George's plan worked and he was able to get a settlement that covered me for the rest of my life."

— Nate Dugan, Deckhand

"I hired George Vourvoulias after I suffered a back injury at work and a surgery that left me worse off than I was before. George explained everything to me and guided me through the process."

— Darren Holmes

Why New Orleans Maritime Workers Choose The Maritime Injury Law Firm

  • Based in New Orleans, 400 Poydras St., CBD, not a satellite office of an out-of-state firm
  • Masters Degree in Admiralty, Tulane University Law School, New Orleans
  • 20+ years practicing exclusively in maritime and Jones Act law
  • Admitted to the Eastern, Middle, and Western Districts of Louisiana and the Fifth Circuit
  • Tried and won Jones Act jury verdicts in the Eastern District of Louisiana
  • Knows the local courts, local employers, and local maritime industry
  • You work directly with George — not a paralegal or associate
  • 100% contingency — no fee unless we recover for you
The Maritime Injury Law Firm - Representing Offshore Workers - tugboat

Frequently Asked Questions About New Orleans Maritime Injuries

Does it matter that George’s office is in New Orleans for my case?

Yes, for several reasons. Most Jones Act and admiralty cases involving New Orleans-area workers are filed in the Eastern District of Louisiana, one block from George’s office. He has appeared in that court for 20 years and knows how it handles maritime cases. He also knows the major maritime employers in the New Orleans market and has handled cases against many of them. A New Orleans attorney with genuine trial experience in the EDLA is a different resource than an out-of-state firm handling your case remotely.

I work offshore but live in the New Orleans area — where is my case filed?

Jones Act cases can be filed in the state where the employer is incorporated, where the vessel operates, or where the seaman resides. For most Gulf of Mexico offshore workers who live in the New Orleans metro area, filing in the Eastern District of Louisiana is available and often advantageous. George is admitted in all three Louisiana federal districts and will evaluate the best venue for your specific case.

I was injured as a longshoreman at Port NOLA — what are my options?

Port NOLA longshoremen and harbor workers are covered by the LHWCA, which provides medical benefits and wage replacement and preserves the right to sue third parties whose negligence caused the injury. If a vessel’s unseaworthy condition contributed to your injury, you have a separate unseaworthiness claim against the vessel owner. These third-party claims can produce damages well beyond what the LHWCA compensation alone provides, including pain and suffering.

I work on a dredge on the Mississippi River — am I covered by the Jones Act?

Yes. Dredge workers who spend at least 30% of their work time aboard the dredge while it is in operation on navigable waters qualify as Jones Act seamen. Dredges are vessels under the Jones Act when they are floating and working. The Mississippi River and its tributaries — including the waters around New Orleans — are navigable waters. Dredge crew who are injured during dredging operations, during transit between work sites, or while living aboard the vessel are protected by the Jones Act, unseaworthiness doctrine, and maintenance and cure.

How quickly should I call after a maritime injury in New Orleans?

Immediately. Evidence disappears quickly — vessel logs can be altered, equipment can be repaired or removed, and witnesses disperse when a crew rotates off. The company’s lawyers are typically involved within 24 hours of a serious incident. Every day of delay is a day the other side has to build their defense while your evidence window closes. The consultation is free, confidential, and takes less than an hour. Call (504) 584-6300.

What if I was injured on the river on the weekend or at night?

Call (504) 584-6300. The line is answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Maritime injuries do not happen on a business schedule and neither does this firm.

Contact a New Orleans Maritime Injury Lawyer

George Vourvoulias has spent 20 years building his maritime law practice in this city — in the federal courthouse, on the docks, on the river, and in the Gulf. If you were injured on the water in or around New Orleans, you are not just calling a lawyer. You are calling a New Orleans maritime attorney who has been fighting these cases in this city his entire career.

Call (504) 584-6300 — free and confidential, 24/7

Let us help you right the ship.

Click or call (504) 584-6300 to schedule a free and confidential consultation

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