What is the Jones Act?
The Jones Act is a law that provides protection to individuals who are members of a crew of a ship or vessel and applies to inland river workers as well as merchant mariners on the seas. The Jones Act governs the liability of vessel operators and employers when there is a work related injury or death of an employee in the course of their duties aboard the vessels.
“Worker’s Compensation” laws which are prevalent in most work places in the United States today do not apply to seaman, towboat crews on the inland rivers, and merchant mariners on the seas, The Jones Act was enacted by Congress due to the conditions which face maritime workers on the job, to provide more complete compensation to those maritime workers who suffer injuries in connection with that employment. All too often maritime employees do not receive their full benefit of the law under the Jones Act because it has never been fully explained to them.
In order to establish a maritime employer's "liability" and to recover the compensation provided by this act, an injured maritime employee must show that his or her injury was caused in some part, even if only in the slightest way, by the maritime employer's negligence. In addition to its duties under the Jones Act, a maritime employer also has an obligation to furnish a "seaworthy vessel." This means that all of the equipment on board the vessel (like ratchets, winches, or wires) must perform the job that they are supposed to do. A wire, which breaks under normal usage, is an unseaworthy condition for which the company is responsible. Seaworthiness also applies to the vessel itself; walkways have to be free from oil, debris or other tripping or slipping hazards, stairways must be wide enough to go up and down in safety, the crew must be experienced and competent. Proof of any of these factors establishes the fault of the company. Consequently the factors that cause an employee's injury and the events that follow are absolutely crucial and every injured employee, his family and his fellow employee must keep that fact in mind.
However, it is important to remember that the concept of negligence does not stop there. If an injured employee is guilty of "contributory negligence," that is, a mistake on the part of the employee which contributes to cause the injury, then that employee's compensation will be reduced by whatever percentage and proportion the jury feels that act of negligence played in causing the injury. For example, if an employee would be entitled to $100,000 for their injuries without contributory negligence, but is found by the jury to have been 10% at fault in causing those injuries, then the compensation will be reduced by that percentage to $90,000. If the employee is found to have contributed 25% to his injury, he recovers only $75,000 of the $100,000 in damages, and so forth.
SLChapman LLC has successfully established fault on the part of maritime employers in thousands of cases, even cases other lawyers have turned down. SLChapman LLC has represented injured river workers and merchant mariners in 45 states over the course of 30 years. Our central geographical location (on the Mississippi River near St. Louis, Missouri) and our private airplane allows us to be at the scene within hours of a maritime injury. Early investigation by our team is vital to our clients’ interests because the company will waste no time trying to minimize their liability.
Contact us anytime to schedule a FREE CONSULTATION with an attorney experienced in the area in which you require assistance.
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