Practice: Maritime Casualty

• Maritime Casualty

  Recovery of Punitive Damages by Seamen in the Eastern District of Louisiana

  • January 11, 2016
  • By Allen & Gooch

  The availability of punitive damages for seamen has historically been a murky issue.  District courts are still attempting to decipher U.S. Supreme Court and Fifth Circuit jurisprudence to determine when punitive damages are available under the Jones Act and general maritime law.   Judges and jurists first look to the U.S. Supreme Court’s opinion in […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Successors’ Use of Prior Pre-Employment Medical Exams

  • November 24, 2015
  • By Allen & Gooch

  In Meche v. Doucet, 777 F.3d 237 (5th Cir. 2015), the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals discussed a Jones Act employer’s McCorpen defense to the payment of maintenance and cure benefits.  To successfully establish the defense, the employer must show (1) the claimant intentionally misrepresented or concealed medical facts; (2) the non-disclosed facts were […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Fifth Circuit: Punitive Damages Not Available for Unseaworthiness

  • November 10, 2014
  • By Allen & Gooch
  

  Fifth Circuit Reverses Itself on Punitive Damages The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently released a 73-page opinion in the en banc rehearing of McBride v. Estis Well Service, L.L.C., No. 12-30714 (5th Cir. Sept. 25, 2014).  As reported previously, the court originally ruled that seamen may be able to recover punitive damages for their employers’ […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Employment Gaps May Affect Seaman Status

  • September 10, 2014
  • By Allen & Gooch
  

  Jones Act Coverage Based on Time Working on Vessel When making claims under the Jones Act, plaintiffs must prove that they spent 30% or more of their time working on a vessel or fleet of vessels under common ownership.  This analysis can become complicated if the seaman was employed by his employer on multiple occasions […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Is Your Contract Governed By General Maritime Law?

  • June 13, 2014
  • By Alan Stewart
  

  In the absence of express provisions to the contrary, maritime contracts are to be governed by and interpreted under general maritime law.  In other words, contractual disputes will be resolved under maritime law (rather than state law) if the applicable contract is a maritime contract. Is the Contract Maritime in Nature? When determining whether a […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Second Circuit: No “Maritime Rescue Doctrine” for Seamen

  • May 23, 2014
  • By Allen & Gooch
  

  When can coming to the rescue create tort liability? Under the “maritime rescue doctrine,” a would-be rescuer in a maritime emergency can only be held contributorily liable for injuries he sustained during the rescue attempt if his conduct was “reckless and wanton.”  The doctrine is premised on the idea that rescuers in emergency situations must […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Fifth Circuit: Bystander Damages Not Available to Jones Act Seamen

  • March 27, 2014
  • By Allen & Gooch
  

  Jones Act Coverage Depends on the Danger Zone Jones Act seamen are only entitled to damages for emotional distress if they can pass the “zone of danger” test.  This test inquires whether a seaman was “physically impacted or within the zone of potential impact.”  See Naquin v. Elevating Boats, L.L.C., No. 12-31258 (5th Cir. March […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Fifth Circuit: Jones Act Seamen Need Not “Go to Sea”

  • March 21, 2014
  • By Allen & Gooch

  Requirements to Qualify as Jones Act Seamen As we previously discussed, Jones Act seamen must “contribute to the function of a vessel or to the accomplishment of its mission,” and they must also have a substantial connection to a vessel or fleet of vessels in navigation.  See Naquin v. Elevating Boats, L.L.C., No. 12-31258 (5th […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Jones Act: Verbal Settlement Agreements May Be Binding

  • January 31, 2014
  • By Allen & Gooch
  

  When seeking enforcement of a settlement, a Jones Act employer bears the burden of proving that the seaman had “an informed understanding of his rights and full appreciation of the consequences of executing the release.”  See Borne v. A & P Boat Rentals No. 4, Inc., 780 F.2d 1254 (5th Cir. 1986). Courts consider the […]

• Maritime Casualty

  Job Reassignment May Change Your Employee’s Seaman Status

  • December 27, 2013
  • By Allen & Gooch
  

  We previously wrote that, in order to be a seaman, an employee’s job duties must “contribute to the function of a vessel or to the accomplishment of its mission,” and he must have a substantial connection to a vessel or fleet of vessels.  This two-part test begs the question:  what is the relevant time period […]