Maritime and Jones Act Attorneys Able to Serve Orange County, California

The maritime attorneys of Gordon & Elias L.L.P. represent injured seamen all over the United States as well as internationally. If you live in Orange County, but either work or were injured in Los Angeles, Long Beach, San Diego, San Francisco, Union City, Stockton, Port Hueneme, Oakland or any other California Coastal city, call Gordon & Elias, L.L.P. to know your rights. Whether you are a deckhand, engineer, roustabout, captain, tankerman, fisherman, first mate, chief mate or hold any other position as a crewmember on a vessel, if you get hurt on the job, the Jones Act lawyers at Gordon & Elias, L.L.P. know what to do get you monetary compensation and necessary medical care.

Not every personal injury lawyer understands what a maritime lawyer understands because the maritime law is quite different than standard negligence.

Because the Jones Act is a federal law, the Texas based law firm often represents injured seamen that live, work or got injured in the states of: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, California, Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Kentucky, Ohio, Missouri, Illinois, Michigan, Tennessee, Virginia, New York and New Jersey. In some instances, they will associate local counsel to assist them. When this is done, you pay no additional percentage. The law firm of Gordon & Elias, L.L.P. works under what is called a complete contingency fee, i.e., if there is no recovery, then you pay absolutely no fee nor any expenses.

Maritime lawyer, Steve Gordon and Jones Act lawyer, Todd Elias are members of the Maritime Law Association and are active participants in the Maritime & Admiralty Law Section of the American Association of Justice. The maritime law firm brings over 40 years of combined trial lawyer experience to bear on each case.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs) under maritime Jones Act law are set forth below:

1. Why do I need a Maritime Jones Act lawyer?

1. What is the Jones Act?

The Jones Act, 46 U.S.C. Section 30104 et seq., is a law that is still favorable to an injured worker. It applies to all persons that are involved in the maritime offshore industry or inland waterway river commerce system. It applies to the fishing, fishery, canning, shrimping, oil field, dredging, barge, tugboat, towboat, crew boat, supply boat, drill ship, platform, oil rig and other maritime offshore industries. The Jones Act allows you to actually sue your maritime employer for negligence and/or “unseaworthiness” for any injuries you suffer including, a back injury, neck injury, herniated disc, brain injury, burn injuries, hurt shoulders and knees, inhalation injuries and wrongful death claims. The fact that you can sue your employer is the major difference between the Jones Act and workers compensation claims.

2. What Is “Unseaworthiness” or “Unseaworthy”?

As indicated above, you can sue your employer for negligence or you can allege that a piece of equipment was unseaworthy and that was a cause of your injury. But what is unseaworthiness? Literally, it means that the particular piece of equipment “is not fit for its intended purpose”.

3. You can also sue under a theory of negligence.

In addition to “unseaworthiness” as a theory of recovery under the Jones Act, you can also sue the employer alleging that a crewmember was negligent and that was the cause of your injuries.

4. What is “Maintenance” and Medical “Cure”?

This is an obligation that is owed to you directly from your employer and is different from the Jones Act. Maintenance is an obligation to pay you a daily amount while you are injured and usually is an amount equal to the cost of lodging and food when you were aboard the vessel. It varies. We have seen it as low as $8.00 a day and as high as $50.00 a day. Medical “Cure” is reasonable and necessary medical care that the employer must pay you yntil you reach maximum medical improvement [MMI].

There are three (3) main points that Gordon & Elias, L.L.P. wants you to understand about Maintenance and Cure. First, they not only apply to injuries suffered while working but also to illness. Second, unlike the Jones Act, they should be paid regardless of fault. In this sense they are very akin to workers compensation. Third, if the employer wrongfully refuses to pay them, the maritime employer can be liable for punitive damages as well as attorneys’ fees.

5. “Comparative Negligence” Applies Under Jones Act

Another concept to understand about the Jones Act is that it applies the legal doctrine of “comparative negligence”. Under a “comparative negligence” approach, the jury hears testimony about the negligent conduct of both parties–the employer and the maritime worker. Based on the evidence, the jury will determine what the injured party’s damages are and how much should be allocated to each party. Sometimes accidents happen not just from the employers’ negligence but also from the seaman’s as well. The good thing about “comparative negligence” is, even though the jury may find a percentage of negligence on the worker, the injured worker still recovers the percentage of the jury’s monetary award that is equal to the employers’ percentage of negligence. By way of example only, if the worker is found 25% negligent and the employer is found 75% negligent and the jury awards $875,000.00, then the judgment would be that the worker recovers $656,250.00 plus costs. This is quite different than in almost all states where, if the injured person is found 51% or more negligent by the jury, the injured person would recover zero no matter how much the jury awarded for money damages.

6. When Must I file Suit?

The Statute of Limitations in a Jones Act claim is three (3) years from the date of injury. A Jones Act lawsuit must be filed within three (3) years of the injury date or it is barred by the Statute of Limitations.

As you can see, a maritime claim is a very specialized area and should only be handled by lawyers who know what to do.