An in-depth online overview of a select legal topic stresses that, “While state and federal laws can be confusing for non-lawyers, maritime law is a whole different beast.”
Indeed, the admiralty/maritime legal sphere can be a maze of complexity to people who first confront it or suddenly find themselves involved in a maritime law-linked legal matter.
Louisiana water-related industries and workers know that especially well. The state has an unrivaled and close connection with industries like commercial/recreational fishing, petrochemical businesses and immense cargo-hauling operations. As we note on our firm’s website at the Lafayette insurance defense law firm of Caffery, Oubre, Campbell & Garrison, “Louisiana’s businesses and culture are intimately tied to the water.”
That linkage breeds constant opportunity and prospects for profit, but also spawns risks and liabilities for the state’s diverse employers. That is perhaps no better evidenced than by the constant recurrence of injury claims brought by workers in the maritime industry.
When on-the-job personal injury claims are alleged, the above-cited complexity often emerges in a material way. Employees in some instances can seek redress under Louisiana’s workers’ compensation laws. Other employees are ineligible to do so and must pursue their claims under admiralty law, specifically the Jones Act.
That federal legislation sets forth flatly unique subject matter and a distinct process for determining and resolving eligible injury claims. The above-cited maritime law primer notes the interplay of many factors that are customarily at work in Jones Act matters and thus emphasizes the wisdom of a litigant getting legal help “right away” if a claim becomes challenging or litigious.
Caffery, Oubre attorneys diligently represent Louisiana businesses and industries in the maritime realm. We welcome contacts to the firm to discuss the work we do that is routinely focused on best-case outcomes for our diverse and valued clients.
