MARITIME LAW

Jones Act Injury Claims

The Jones Act is a law that provides a safety net for any maritime worker injured while performing work duties on a vessel in America’s navigable waters. To be eligible for Jones Act compensation, an injured employee must prove their injury was caused by the negligence of an employer, a fellow crew member, or unsafe conditions on the work vessel.

The protective law covers the entire network of rivers, lakes, and canals used to transport raw materials and good from state to state. The Act sets environmental standards, and carefully measures the liability of an employer, and proper workplace safety standards of American-owned vessels and assigned waterway crews.

Jones Act coverage supports a wide range of American industries, including cargo and materials shipping on navigable waters, including inland waterways like the Great Lakes and the Ohio River.

A recent estimate from the Department of Labor found that over 73,000 American jobs were directly attributable to the Jones Act. These jobs include the crewing of vessels, shore-side management, as well as building, maintaining, and repairing such transport vessels.

Under the Jones Act, workers have the right to file civil lawsuits against employers, with the right to recover any personal damages, medical expenses, pain and suffering, disability, disfigurement, lost wages, and loss of future earning capacity.

Ohio Shipyard Injury Lawsuits

If you are injured at an Ohio workplace, notify your supervisor or employer as soon as possible, and seek medical attention. You have the right to select a physician of your choice to treat your injury.

While you are able, ask your employer for a Request for Examination and/or Treatment form, which authorizes medical treatment. Of course in a medical emergency, you may request authorization from your employer after obtaining emergency attention.

After treatment of an injury, you are required to give a written notice of the injury to the employer within 30 days of the incident, or in the case of an occupational disease, within 30 days of when you become aware that you have an illness or disability related to the job.

Compensation benefits may be in jeopardy if you fail to report the injury within the required time frame. 

The Difference between Disability Claims

A disability is considered “temporary” if an injured employee is unable to return to work for medical reasons while recovering from a work injury.

A medical doctor must write a report that says the employee is unable to work. A “permanent” disability describes an employee’s medical condition as stable and not expected to improve.

A disability is labeled “total” when an injured employee cannot perform any work due to a work-related injury. A disability is called “partial” if an injured employee cannot perform the same work he was doing at the time of the injury, though is able to work in a modified role with the same or a different employer.

Ohio Maritime Lawsuits

Employers are often responsible for injuries sustained at the workplace. Employers have a responsibility to provide a safe work environment, which also encompasses the long-term health of an employee.

You may receive compensation and medical benefits if an injury or illness is related to workplace exposure to harmful conditions or substances. You may also be entitled to benefits for an occupational disease where your symptoms do not occur until after you have retired from work.

If an employer refuses to compensate you for injuries or illnesses related to the workplace, it is prudent to contact a legal professional to review your case and file a claim against your former company.

Even if both the responsible employer and its insurance carrier are insolvent or bankrupt, there may be other channels to compensate injured workers. In the event of an employee’s death, the eligible survivors and family members may file a claim on their behalf and seek compensation for wrongful death, lost wages, and incurred medical expenses.

Ohio River Accident Lawsuits

The Ohio River is a crucial shipping waterway in the Midwest with more than 50 million tons of cargo passing through annually. Thousands of workers are employed to assist in the transport of goods, and to ensure safe travel of boats and barges up and down the Ohio.

However, due to the crumbling Ohio river infrastructure of existing dams, locks, river piers, platforms and docks, many workers are at risk of serious injury at the workplace.

Each year, portions of the Ohio River are closed to barge traffic when dams and locks fail to function, or keep up with the huge amount of shipping traffic. Overloading issues and overworked transport staff may lead to injuries and workplace deaths.

When dams and locks and other equipment is damaged, employees find themselves at a heightened risk of injury. With some of the dams and locks almost 100 years old, this is becoming more of a common occurrence with each passing year.

The Army Corps of Engineers officials routinely warn that much of the Ohio River infrastructure is at risk of failure. Barge operators also say this continuing problem is caused by a lack of funding.

A lack of federal funding means old dams and locks break down and require more frequent servicing, disrupting river traffic, and raises the risk of workplace injury. Recreational boaters may also be affected, and find the river less safe as a result of disrupted commercial traffic.

Large transport companies and government institutions have a responsibility to provide workers with safe working environments. When they fail to protect workers, they must compensate employees and families for the damage they have caused.

Workers at Ohio River dams and locks, and other river workplaces who have been injured or developed health issues may have claims against their former or current employers. Do not hesitate to seek medical and professional legal assistance regarding Ohio Maritime law.

Great Lake Accidents

Working conditions on large transport vessels and on docks and piers can be particularly dangerous, and each year on Lake Erie and the Ohio River many serious injuries occur. Injuries may result from defective machinery, large equipment malfunction, poor management, a negligent crew, or an unsafe work environment.

Ohio waterway-related injuries occurring with institutions and companies on Lake Erie and the Ohio River may be covered under state workers’ compensation systems, but by filing a state-based claim, a worker may be denied federal coverage under larger and more beneficial protections under the Jones Act and Longshore Act.

Longshore Act compensation frequently provides benefits that exceed what is available under state workers comp systems. The Longshore Act more frequently favors injured workers. Any injured worker should contact a local lawyer to discuss compensation options after an accident.

Longshoremen and stevedores working on dry docks or piers, who are injured while loading, unloading, maintaining, or cleaning river barges or Great Lakes vessels, may file a federal claim under the Longshore Act. Longshore Act coverage may be extended to injured workers such as truck drivers moving ship parts or a mechanic working around a harbor.

Jones Act protections, however, are more geared toward seamen and crew members who are injured while on the water. Whether a worker is on shore or on the water, an injury due to employer or crew negligence may warrant a claim against an employer.

Maritime Injury Settlements

With the help of employee protections in place and an experienced attorney, victims of maritime and longshoreman injuries are able to recover the huge costs of an accident.

The Lyon Firm is fully committed to helping injured workers and their families recoup rightful financial compensation from negligent employers. Costs that may be recovered from worker injuries can include the following:

• Hospital expenses
• Long-term rehabilitation
• Home medical care
• Lost wages
• Future earning capacity
• Future health complications
• Pain and suffering
• Vocational rehabilitation

There may be several channels available to compensate injured Ohio longshoremen and harbor workers. Contact an Ohio maritime attorney to discuss.

In the event of a fatality, the survivors and family members of a victim may file a claim and seek compensation for wrongful death, lost wages, and incurred medical expenses.