Filing A Jones Act Seaman Lawsuit Against An Employer
October 13, 2017
Seamen fall under the Jones Act which allows them to sue their employers for negligence and seek damages for wage loss, medical bills, and pain and suffering. Workers’ compensation does not pay for pain and suffering. Harbor workers assigned to vessels owned by their employers such as tug boats, workboats, barges, and floating cranes, can claim seaman status and sue their employers directly. This right was affirmed in a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case known as Southwest Marine, Inc. V. Gizoni, a San Diego case that was handled by Preston Easley. Gizoni was a shipyard rigging foreman who was injured when he fell through a hole in the deck of a work barge owned by his employer. You have three years from the date of injury to file a Jones Act lawsuit….