Alaska Troopers have cited two crewmembers of the F/V ALASKA OCEAN for failure to obtain crewmember licenses. The citations were issued in Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and bail of $260 was set for each of the crewmembers. The citations are pending in Unalaska District Court. One crewmember resides in Washington and…
A Washington State King County Court Judge has entered a 1.12 million dollar verdict in favor of an injured Bristol Bay fisherman. The 50-year old fisherman, Ronald Lanphere, injured his knee in 2008 when his rain gear became entangled in a rotating shaft of the vessel’s engine room. Lanphere had…
In many cases involving injured fishermen, during litigation to obtain compensation for the crewman under the Jones Act, the fishing company attempts to block and obstruct the crewman from getting information necessary to prepare his case for trial. A Washington State Superior Court Judge in King County has recently ordered…
As a result of the recent discussions in Congress concerning the repeal of the Jones Act, the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Navy League officially announced their strong opposition to its repeal. Their stance was promptly lauded by the Maritime Cabotage Task Force (MCTF), a national coalition that represents U.S.…
A claim for punitive damages made by a commercial diver based upon the legal theory of unseaworthiness has withstood legal challenge in the United States District Court for Hawaii. The Court found as a matter of law that punitive damages may be sought in cases involving unseaworthiness. The Court based…
Superior Court Judge Richard Eddie has held that a seaman’s wrongful death claim involving claims for punitive damages for unseaworthiness and Jones Act negligence will proceed to trial on the merits. The vessel owner and employer’s motion to dismiss the seaman’s claim for punitive damages was rejected. Following the Supreme…
For the past ten years, maritime workers aboard ships and fishing vessels at sea have been able to cheaply stay in contact with their wives, children and girlfriends, and even run a shoreside business, utilizing the ship’s e-mail system. There has never been much privacy on a ship at sea,…
Wesley Keller, a member of the Alaska State House of Representatives, and Vice Chair of the Alaska House Fisheries Special Committee, was cited June 11, 2010, for an illegal sport fishing violation. Keller was fishing with two poles near the entrance to Halibut Cove in Kachemak Bay. He was issued…
Under the Jones Act, the evidentiary proof a seaman needs to present to establish a causal connection between his employer’s negligence and his injury is very slight. A Louisiana Appellate Court has reaffirmed this standard in Bancroft v. Mitchell Offshore Marine, 2010 WL 198219 (2010 La. App. 3 Cir.). The…
Yesterday, the Coast Guard issued an order requiring the cargo vessel STX DAISY to remain at anchor in Port Angeles, Washington. During a routine Coast Guard boarding of the vessel in the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Coast Guard suspected the vessel’s Master showed signs of intoxication. The 587…