Maritime
Hurt working on a boat
Seamen have their own injury law. It is not workers' compensation, and its deadlines and benefits are different.
The Jones Act lets a seaman bring a claim against an employer whose negligence played any part in an injury, even a small one. Other maritime claims cover an unseaworthy vessel, and an injured seaman is owed maintenance and cure, which means living costs and medical care while recovering.
We bring these claims for crews on tugs, crew boats, supply vessels, dredges and shrimp boats working out of the Gulf Coast ports.
Who we help
Deckhands and mates
Engineers and tankermen
Cooks and galley crew
Crew boat and supply vessel workers
Shrimpers and fishing crews
Claims
Four claims a seaman can bring
Jones Act negligence
Against the employer, when a short crew, a missing guard or a rushed order played any part in the injury.
Unseaworthiness
Against the vessel's owner, when the boat, its gear or its crew was not fit for the job, even if no one was careless.
Maintenance and cure
Living money and medical care owed while you recover, whoever was at fault. We ask for it in writing in the first week.
Platform and offshore work
Crews who move between boats and platforms. Which law applies depends on the job, so we sort that out first.
The first week
What to do before you talk to anyone else
- Report the injury to the captain or the company in writing, and keep a copy.
- See a doctor and say it happened at work.
- Photograph the spot, the gear and your injury.
- Keep anything you are asked to sign, and send it to us before you sign it.
- Write down who was aboard.
We can take the call from a hospital bed or a kitchen table. Nothing here replaces advice about your own case.
Questions
Questions from crews
Is a Jones Act claim the same as workers' compensation?
No. Workers' compensation pays set benefits whoever was at fault. A Jones Act claim asks the employer to pay for the full harm when its negligence played a part, and a seaman also keeps the right to maintenance and cure.
Who counts as a seaman?
Usually someone who works on a vessel in navigation for a good share of their time. Dock, shipyard and some offshore jobs sit on the other side of the line. The answer decides which law applies, so we check it early.
My employer says I signed away my claim.
Papers signed at hiring, or right after an injury, are not always the end of a claim. Send us what you signed before you sign anything else.
Does it matter where the boat's owner is based?
It can. Boats working out of Gulf ports often belong to companies elsewhere, and where a claim can be filed depends on the facts. We look at that in the first meeting.