Houston, Galveston, New Orleans and Houma, Louisiana Jones Act Lawyers & Maritime Accident Attorneys

The Merchant Marine Act of 1920, commonly referred to as the Jones Act, is a federal law that provides remedies to seamen who are injured during the course of their employment on a vessel. It allows injured sailors to recover damages from their employers for the negligence of the ship's owner, the captain, or fellow members of the ship's crew. The Jones Act applies only to seamen, who are persons employed by a vessel "in navigation" and who contribute to the vessel's overall function or purpose. Essentially, these are the people who do the ship's work.

Similar to other parallel statutes designed to protect injured workers, the Jones Act provides for injured seamen to receive "transportation, wages, maintenance and cure". This means it is the ship-owner's responsibility to return the injured seaman home, pay a portion of his lost wages and provide for any and all medical care until the seaman has recovered as much as he or she can.

In addition, an unseaworthiness claim may be pursued if the employer is also the vessel's owner or if the injury was caused by an unsafe condition present on the vessel itself. Violation of a safety statute in causing an injury, as well as failure to provide sufficient medical care following an injury, can also result in employer liability. In fact, seamen may be protected by the Jones Act even if they are not working directly on a vessel when injured, so long as any such temporary assignment was "in the service of the ship".

The Jones Act can also hold an employer liable for the negligence of other employees or individuals for which the employer is responsible. In some cases, even an independent contractor may be seen as an employee under the Jones Act.

Under the Jones Act, the employer of a seaman owes him a higher duty of care than is normally associated with an ordinary negligence case. Any breach of that higher standard of duty, no matter how insignificant, that contributes to causing a seaman's injury may result in employer liability. If a seaman contributed to his own injury, the employer's liability may be reduced, but this will not reduce the amount of compensation available under the act.

A claim under the Jones Act must generally be brought within three years of the injury in order to avoid the statute of limitations.

If you or someone you know has been injured at sea, it is imperative that you seek legal aid as quickly as possible. Contact the Texas maritime Law Firm of Fitts Zehl by calling our toll-free number (800) 99-FITTS or by e-mailing us at info@gulfcoastmaritimelawyer.com.

HB 1602: The End of the Home Venue Option?
Posted by: rzehl
January 20, 2009

Due to what some saw as an increase in the filing of Jones Act cases in four specific counties in south Texas, HB 1602 was signed into law by Texas Governor Rick Perry on May 24, 2007. Essentially, HB 1602 revokes the special venue option that had previously been available to injured Jones Act seamen. Under this special venue option, Jones Act seamen, following an injury, were able to file suit in the county where they had resided during that injury. The advantages of this were numerous and included close proximity to one's family during trial, local doctors and a local jury pool.

HB 1602 changes the venue options available to an injured seaman and removes the home venue option in certain cases. This bill was the result of a compromise and was originally even worse. Its initial intent was to force most injured Texas seamen to file suit in their employers' county of residence. This would have placed an undue burden on injured Texas seamen and would have made litigation exceedingly difficult for any injured Jones Act plaintiff.

HB 1602 designated the counties of Galveston and Harris as permissible venues for certain Jones Act cases originating outside of the state, without any regard to the plaintiff's county of residence. In addition, the bill gives dredge companies special venue protection as well as protection from being sued by any of their south Texas employees in a south Texas county.

Regarding non-dredge laborers, special venue rules have been enacted by HB 1602 dependent upon the work being performed at the time of the injury as well as the location where said injury occurred. The general venue rule, under HB 1602, provides for two venue options: the Texas county in which the employer's principal office is located or the plaintiff's county of residence at the time of the incident.

For injuries occurring onshore, inland, or during an erosion management project, venue is proper either in the county in which all or a substantial portion of the events giving rise to the claim occurred or in the Texas county where the defendant's principal office is located.

For inland, onshore or dredge worker/erosion project injuries that occur outside the state of Texas, there exist four venue options. First, venue would be proper in the county of defendant's principal office, so long as that county is a coastal county. A coastal county merely refers to a county that contains a United States Customs port, through which maritime freight is shipped. Second, venue would be proper in Harris County if the plaintiff had lived anywhere except for Galveston at the time of the incident. Third, Galveston would be proper, so long as the plaintiff does not live in Harris County. Lastly, if the defendant does not have a principal office in the state of Texas that lies within a coastal county, venue would be proper in the plaintiff's county of residence at the time of the incident in question.

As is obvious, these new regulations will undoubtedly result in an increase in Jones Act suits filed in Galveston and Harris Counties. They may also cause some dredge workers to have to travel a great distance to litigate their claims, resulting in added time and expense.

If you or a loved one has been injured offshore contact the experienced Jones Act attorneys of Fitts Zehl, LLP by phone at (713) 491-6064 or by email at gulfcoastmaritimelawyer.com.

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