Offshore Worker Injuries
Corpus Christi Maritime Law Attorney
Corpus Christi is a booming site for sea transport, providing access to the Gulf of Mexico and the complete US inland waterway system. Many of us in Corpus Christi are enriched and impacted by this important port. We’ve got family and friends with ship-based jobs, and we intimately understand the importance of the sea to life in the US. Having a law office in Corpus Christi means dealing extensively with seamen, port workers, and longshoremen. It just makes sense that the experienced attorney at Brunkenhoefer, P.C. Injury Attorney would become skilled professionals in maritime law.
Maritime law, sometimes called admiralty law, handles legal issues that arise or occur on the water. Often these issues involve job-related injuries. It’s no secret that working on docks, ships, and offshore rigs can be exceptionally dangerous, and injured employees often find themselves in financial distress after an accident. Whether you’re a ship or port worker, our experienced team of legal professionals can help you fight for the employee benefits you deserve from your employer or the monetary compensation you are due from the party responsible for your injury. Read more about the cases we handle.
Common Maritime Workers’ Issues
Our law firm has the knowledge and the experience necessary to successfully take on a wide variety of maritime law cases. We have won maritime injury cases for seamen involving poor ship maintenance, insufficient equipment, dangerous fumes, and many other on-the-job safety issues. With over 25 years of experience, our firm possesses the skills needed to deal with even the most complicated, nuanced legal issues. Some of the maritime law cases we handle include:
- Deck/barge hand injuries
- Offshore worker injuries
- Longshoremen injuries
- Jones Act violations
Whether your job involves cargo transfer, performing repairs on barges, or offshore gas well maintenance, our dedicated maritime lawyers can help you fight for the financial compensation you need to handle your work-related injury.
Deck / Barge Hand Injuries
Deck and barge hands often work with dangerous equipment and heavy materials on a daily basis. All kinds of vessels require the services of deck hands since these workers perform essential tasks that keep ships functional. In many cases, that means handling lines and rigging, checking for leaks, carrying out basic maintenance, lashing barges together or to towboats, and seeing to docking and launching.
Deck and barge hands can sustain devastating injuries in the line of duty including:
- Broken bones
- Severe lacerations
- Muscle tears
- Spinal fractures
- Brain injuries
- Crushed hands, feet, or limbs
- Torn ligaments
Whatever your injury, you deserve a skilled legal representative to secure the benefits and financial compensation you need.
Offshore Workers
Employees stationed on offshore oil rigs and gas wells work in some of the most dangerous conditions imaginable. The heavy equipment and dangerous tools necessary for offshore jobs can cause serious, even debilitating, injuries. Additionally, the environmental conditions offshore can pose more hazards. Many offshore workers have tragically died in drowning accidents, fires, and explosions. The exposure to toxic substances can also be lethal.
If you are an offshore worker, your employer has a legal obligation to make sure your job conditions are as safe as possible. Employers have to schedule and oversee routine maintenance for the offshore site, equipment, and vessels. They also have to implement sufficient training programs for workers operating heavy machinery such as cranes. Your employer has a serious duty to take basic, preventative measures to keep you and your co-workers safe. If you were hurt at an offshore site, you might be able to recover substantial financial compensation to cover some or all of the costs of your injury.
Longshoremen
Longshoremen and other port workers enable vast shipping networks to run smoothly. Their efforts link land and sea, and they work hard to ensure speedy cargo transfer. Longshoremen have to be diligent and experienced since they handle large machines, heavy cargo loads, and shipping schedules on a daily basis. Of course, working on ports filled with towering machines and weighty materials comes with its fair share of risks. Tragically, many longshoremen and other port workers are seriously injured on the job each year. Such injuries can lead to high medical bills and long recovery periods, leaving workers not only hurt but in financial distress.
Because longshoremen face danger by simply stepping onto their job site, employers have a steep responsibility to look after the safety of their workers. Unfortunately, sometimes companies neglect their duties to their employees, allowing job sites to become much more dangerous than they should be. The experienced legal team at Brunkenhoefer, P.C. Injury Attorney has the know-how and skills to hold the responsible party accountable if you were injured at work. Our attorney has handled an impressive range of port worker injuries claims, and we are proud to fight for the rights of longshoremen.
Jones Act
The Jones Act, or the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, grants special protections to seamen and other maritime employees. Unlike other workers, maritime employees are allowed to bring personal injury cases against their employers in the event an injury caused by negligent behavior. Workers’ compensation typically ignores fault in injury cases for those who have land-based jobs. Even if the employer indirectly caused the injury by putting an employee in a dangerous situation, the employee would not be able to pursue a suit as long as they are covered by workers’ compensation insurance.
Maritime employees actually have two readily available legal protections. Laws of maintenance and cure are similar to workers’ compensation. They compel employers to pay for your basic costs of living, such as room and board, and for your medical expenses. The Jones Act also allows seamen to pursue personal injury cases if an employer caused their injury. Consider an employer who fails to provide the proper safety equipment for a deckhand securing face wires between a tug and a barge. If the deckhand gets injured performing this task, the Jones Act permits them to seek further financial compensation in addition to receiving maintenance and cure.
Maritime Law Frequently Asked Questions
If you work on or around the water and have been injured on the job, you probably have a lot of questions. We have compiled a short list of some common issues for your reference. If you have other concerns specific to your unique circumstances, feel free to call us at 361-888-8808.
How much is my case worth?
That largely depends on the extent and costs of your injuries. If you’re an injured or ill maritime worker, you may be due maintenance and cure from your employer. Maintenance and cure should cover your general cost of living and your medical treatment as you recover. However, you may also be due more substantial financial compensation if your medical condition was caused or made worse by your employer’s negligence. For example, if you served on a vessel that was technically not seaworthy, and you were injured in an onboard accident, you might be able to bring a personal injury claim against the vessel’s owner. Winning those damages could help you cover more extensive medical treatment and compensation for your pain, suffering, and any necessary lifestyle changes.
Why should I seek compensation?
If you have been injured on the job, you could be facing hefty hospital bills and an extended recovery time. That can mean losing out on crucial work wages and potentially going into debt. There are many protections that state and federal laws offer maritime workers to compensate for the dangers and the inconveniences of sea-based jobs. You may be due maintenance and cure as well as further financial compensation from your employer. Seeking monetary recompense through the law means safeguarding your financial stability so that you and your family are not unduly burdened by your injury.
Why should I choose Brunkenhoefer, P.C. Injury Attorney?
Our dedicated maritime lawyers have a long history of fighting for the rights of deckhands, longshoremen, offshore workers, and other sea-based employees. Not only can we help you secure the basic benefits you are legally due under maintenance and cure, we can fight to get you further damages if your employer recklessly put you in danger. We can also investigate the accident that caused your injury or the workplace conditions that contributed to your illness. When engineers and manufacturers release ship components or equipment parts that cause accidents or break unexpectedly, those companies might be legally obligated to pay damages to any injured parties.
Contact Us
Our maritime law practitioners understand the risks that come with working on and around the water. Longshoremen deal with heavy equipment and dangerous machinery every single day. They face crane and forklift injuries, fires, electrocution, and other accidents. Seamen also confront unique threats. Just the risk of drowning means that employers need to take numerous safety measures for their employees. At Brunkenhoefer, P.C. Injury Attorney, we are familiar with the unique legal protections available for maritime workers. We use laws such as the Jones Act to hold employers accountable for your safety. We are primed and ready to fight to get you the monetary compensation you deserve.
The experienced legal professionals at Brunkenhoefer, P.C. Injury Attorney can help you with any issues involving maritime law. Our skilled team is ready to bring our considerable knowledge to bear for you. Call us today at 361-888-8808 to learn more about our services and discuss the specifics of your case.