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Injured seamen are entitled to maintenance and cure, and unearned wages, regardless of fault

Wednesday, February 14th, 2007

Injured seamen are entitled to maintenance, cure and unearned wages.  However, some Jones Act employers refuse to pay maintenance, cure and/or unearned wages.

Injured seamen can bring claims beyond the traditional worker's compensation remedies.  Specifically, injured seamen are entitled to payment for related medical treatment, payment of compensation during their period of disability, and payment of unearned wages.  In addition to these worker's compensation-type remedies, injured seamen can also bring negligence claims and unseaworthiness claims against their employer.

The rest of this post explains the entitlement to maintenance and cure and unearned wages in more detail:
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The Jones Act – What Is It?

Sunday, February 11th, 2007

Injured seamen and offshore workers often ask me to explain their possible remedies under the Jones Act and to explain the Jones Act to them. 

The Jones Act is really a pretty straightforward set of rules first passed by Congress is 1920 and known as The Merchant Marine Act of 1920.  The statute itself is short.  Although the statute is short and can be read in less than 5 minutes, like ship that's been in the water a long time, the Jones Act has a lot of barnacles in the form of Court opinions that interpret it's provision.Read More »



New Unseaworthiness Decision

Thursday, February 8th, 2007

A district court recently found that a winch attached to a dock is not part of a ship such that a defect in the winch could be considered a part of the ship for unseaworthiness purposes.

The decision is O'Donnell v. Jean McCausland, L.L.C., 2005 U.S. Dist. 29202, No. 04-cv-175-PB (D.N.H., November 17, 2005.

This decision makes sense.  The shipowner owes a duty to provide a seaworthy ship and equipment to seamen aboard the vessel.  It does not owe such a duty with respect to dock-based equipment, at least according to this recent decision.
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What kind of offshore drilling rigs are covered by the Jones Act?

Wednesday, January 31st, 2007

The Jones Act covers "seamen" injured on vessels of all kinds, including mobile offshore drilling rigs.

There are many kinds of mobile offshore drilling rigs, including jack-up rigs, mobile offshore drilling units (or "MODUs"), semi-submersibles, spar platforms, lay barges, and drill ships.

Many Courts have found that these so-called "special purpose vessels" (or "SPVs") are vessel for Jones Act purposes.  However, a worker injured aboard a mobile drilling rig still needs to pass the test set forth it the United States Supreme Court's Chandris decision, which requires, generally, a connection to a vessel or identifiable fleet of vessels...

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The U.S. Supreme Court Decides Unanimously in Favor of Jones Act seaman

Wednesday, January 31st, 2007

In a wonderful victory for Jones Act seaman and injured maritime workers generally, last year, the United States Supreme Court decide Stewart v. Dutra, a case involving whether an injured dredge worker was a Jones Act "seaman" and whether the dredge he was on was a "vessel" for Jones Act purposes.

The case is a must-read for all maritime attorneys and is recommended for Jones Act seaman and maritime workers generally.

The U.S. Supreme Court decided, essentially, that anything "practically capable" of moving across the water, whether it does so or not, is a "vessel" for Jones...

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Are Casino Boat Workers Covered Under Maritime Law?

Sunday, January 28th, 2007

As the gambling industry continues to expand, so does the use of gambling boats.  If a worker is assigned to a gambling boat and is injured in the course of his or her employment, they are typically treated as Jones Act seamen regardless of their duties on the particular vessel.

This is true on gambling or casino boats that occasionally cruise away from the shore.  It may not be true if the gambling boat is permanently affixed shoreside. 

Many states allow gambling boats to work while permanently moored, with no intention of taking them out onto the...

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