Why Hire a Louisiana Maritime Lawyer?
Because maritime cases are won by firms that live in this law.
Your case will be governed by federal maritime law rather than Louisiana tort law, and that difference decides everything: which court hears it, which deadlines apply, what compensation is available, and who can be held responsible. Maritime claims turn on federal statutes like the Jones Act, the Longshore & Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, and the Death on the High Seas Act, on doctrines like unseaworthiness and maintenance and cure, and on evidence that lives aboard vessels: logs, black boxes, and crews that scatter after every hitch.
A personal injury law generalist can miss the claim, the court, or the deadline that decides the outcome. We have practiced maritime law for more than two decades and have handled cases from the worst offshore disasters in modern history. Our credentials reflect that: Tier 1 rankings from Best Lawyers for Admiralty and Maritime Law, plus recognition from The National Trial Lawyers, Avvo, and Super Lawyers.
Which Maritime Law Covers Me?
Your duties and connection to a vessel decide which law covers you. Your job title does not. Companies routinely classify workers in whichever direction costs them less, so treat this as a starting point and have a maritime lawyer confirm it.
Find Your Claim
Where you worked and what you did decide which law protects you.
Crew of a vessel: the Jones Act
Deckhands, tankermen, drillship and liftboat crews, captains, and commercial fishermen who spend at least 30% of their time in service of a vessel. You can sue your employer directly for full damages.
See our Louisiana Jones Act page.
Dock, harbor & shipyard workers: the LHWCA
Longshoremen, crane operators, and ship repairers at the river terminals and ports. Federal no-fault benefits with short deadlines: 30 days to report, 1 year to file.
See our LHWCA page.
Fixed-platform workers: OCSLA
Workers on platforms attached to the seabed borrow Louisiana law through the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, including its deadline.
See our oil rig accident page.
Deaths offshore: the Jones Act & DOHSA
Families of workers killed at sea can bring
wrongful death claims. Deaths more than 3 nautical miles out fall under DOHSA, which limits recovery to pecuniary losses.
Not sure? That’s normal
Coverage is the most contested question in maritime law, and companies argue for whichever answer pays you less. One free call settles it:
(888) 493-1629.
Our Record in Maritime Cases
Our verdicts and settlements on behalf of injured offshore workers include some of the largest maritime recoveries in American history, and a $29 million settlement believed to be the largest known for an offshore wrongful death.
“[Arnold & Itkin] have given me my life back. They have really given me my life back and my family’s life back…They fought tooth and nail for me and my family. Anytime we needed them, they were there.”
— Josh, maritime accident survivor
Working Louisiana’s Waters
No state depends on maritime work like Louisiana does. The Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) handles crude off the coast. Port Fourchon services the majority of deepwater Gulf activity, and the heliports at Houma, Galliano, and Port Fourchon fly the crews out to it. The Port of Greater Baton Rouge is the deepwater gateway for agricultural exports, petroleum, and chemical shipments, and the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans runs past chemical plants, grain terminals, and refineries the entire way. Add the Intracoastal Waterway and the bayous, and tens of thousands of Louisiana workers are on the water every day.
That work is measurably dangerous. According to the CDC, maritime workers face a far higher risk of on-the-job injury than most American workers, roughly twice the likelihood faced by construction workers, and offshore oil and gas work is consistently ranked among the most dangerous occupations in the world. We represent workers throughout the state, from Baton Rouge and New Orleans to Houma, Morgan City, Lake Charles, and the coastal parishes.
Common Causes of Louisiana Maritime Accidents
Maritime work is dangerous by nature, but the law has never accepted danger as an excuse. Nearly every serious case we handle traces back to a decision someone made: deferring a repair, running short-handed, skipping a procedure to keep a schedule.
The recurring causes for maritime accidents include the following:
- Equipment failure from deferred maintenance on winches, cranes, and deck machinery.
- Crane and lifting failures, including rigging and crane collapse during transfers.
- Slips and falls on decks without anti-skid surfaces, proper railings, or lighting.
- Explosions and fires aboard rigs and vessels handling high-pressure hydrocarbons.
- Collisions and allisions in the crowded traffic of the river and the Intracoastal Waterway.
- Inadequate training and undermanning, which turns a routine task into a two-person job done by one.
Where those causes trace to OSHA or Coast Guard violations, the violation becomes evidence.
Establishing that is a large part of what an investigation is for.
Seaworthiness: Manning, Equipping & Supplying
A vessel owner owes every crew member a seaworthy vessel, and that duty is absolute: it cannot be delegated to a contractor, a captain, or the crew. Courts have consistently held that seaworthiness comes down to three things, and a failure in any one of them can make a vessel unseaworthy:
- Manning. Enough crew, competent and properly trained for the work.
- Equipping. Gear and machinery that are in working order and fit for the job.
- Supplying. The provisions, safety equipment, and materials the crew needs to work safely.
Because an unseaworthiness claim targets the vessel owner while a Jones Act negligence claim targets the employer, most serious offshore cases assert both.
What Is Maintenance & Cure?
Maintenance and cure is an injured seaman’s right to daily living expenses (maintenance) and all reasonable medical treatment (cure) until reaching maximum medical improvement, owed regardless of who was at fault. It is the oldest protection in maritime law and the one companies most often manipulate: many carriers still offer a maintenance rate between $15 and $35 a day, an amount set by decades-old contracts that covers nowhere near a Louisiana household’s actual costs. That rate can be challenged, you choose your own doctor, and willful refusal to pay can expose an employer to punitive damages. Our full explanation of maintenance and cure covers what to do if benefits are cut off.
What It Means in Plain English
“They also provide the workers with the right to something called maintenance and cure, which is a fancy legal way of saying that you get your medical bills paid for if you’ve been hurt, and you should get some wage relief if you’re off of work.”
What Compensation Can I Recover?
Maritime law reaches much further than Louisiana workers’ compensation. Under the Jones Act, an injured seaman can recover economic damages including all past and future medical care and lost earning capacity, plus non-economic damages for pain and suffering, mental anguish, and disfigurement. Maintenance and cure runs alongside those claims, not instead of them.
The catastrophic injuries that drive these numbers are the ones that end careers on the water: traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis, amputations, burns, and the post-traumatic stress that follows a disaster at sea. For a worker who can never go back offshore, future earning capacity is usually the largest number in the case, and the one insurers fight hardest to shrink. See also: how much is my offshore injury case worth?
Your Rights After a Maritime Injury
Three rights to use from day one. You have the right to your own doctor; company-selected physicians may describe your injuries in the company’s favor. You have the right to refuse a recorded statement until you have spoken with a lawyer. And if you qualify as a seaman, you have the right to maintenance and cure from the day of injury, paid regardless of fault.
Three more things the company won’t volunteer. Seamen may also be owed unearned wages through the end of the hitch. An injury that aggravates a pre-existing condition is still covered. And your benefits are not contingent on signing anything, so do not sign a release without a lawyer reviewing it first, because signing the wrong document can waive claims you don’t know you have. If the company is pressuring you to sign, that is the moment to call a Louisiana maritime injury attorney.
Representing Victims of History’s Worst Maritime Disasters
When the Deepwater Horizon exploded in the Gulf, more than a third of the crew retained our firm. When the El Faro sailed into a category 4 hurricane and sank with everyone aboard, the widows turned to us. Those cases were fought against the largest offshore employers in the world, and they are why Louisiana families call us when something catastrophic happens on the water.
Get a Free Consultation with Our Louisiana Maritime Lawyers
The company’s claims team started working your file before the vessel reached the dock. You should have someone working for you. Call Arnold & Itkin at (888) 493-1629 for a free, confidential consultation with a Louisiana maritime lawyer. We fight for the seamen, longshoremen, and offshore workers who keep this state running. No Matter What.
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