Jones Act Provisions

Florida Jones Act Lawyers

Florida seaman, crewman, commercial fisherman, and other offshore workers aboard U.S. flagged vessels are protected by a federal law called the Jones Act, which requires employers compensate maritime workers for injuries sustained on the job.  Under the Jones Act, injured maritime employees can collect maintenance and cure benefits for on-the-job injuries, and they can file suit against their employer if negligence played a role in their injury.  The Jones Act also allows workers who believe their injuries have been caused by an unsafe vessel to file claims of unseaworthiness against the vessel owner.  Families of offshore workers killed on the job can also obtain compensation via the Jones Act.

Over the past 40 years, the Florida Jones Act lawyers at Gilman Law LLP have gained extensive experience handling maritime injury cases, including those involving:

  • Jones Act Negligence
  • Unseaworthiness
  • Maintenance and Cure
  • Unearned or Sick Wages
  • Breach of Contract
  • Earned Penalty Wages
  • Wrongful Discharge From Employment

Because the Jones Act is such a complex piece of legislation, injured seaman and their families need an experienced Jones Act attorney to ensure that they are fairly and lawfully compensated. The Florida Jones Act lawyers at Gilman Law LLP have extensive experience handling maritime injury cases, and have successfully assisted hundreds of crewmen and their families with claims.  If you decide to retain the Florida Jones Act lawyers at Gilman Law LLP for your claim, you can be assured that they will fight aggressively to make sure you receive all of the compensation you need to cover current and future medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and other damages.

Florida Jones Act Claims

Under the Jones Act, a vessel includes many different types of ships, or other floating or movable rigs.  These can include U.S. flagged barges, tankers, diving vessels, research vessels, fishing vessels, cargo ships, drill ships, and many others.  Maritime employees covered by the Jones Act include masters, captains, offices, crewmembers and certain other people who work aboard vessels. Workers eligible for Jones Act compensation do not have to be employed in work that involves the navigational activities of the ship.  Even cruise ship entertainers are eligible for compensation should they become injured on the job.

Under the Jones Act, injured seaman can make a number of claims for compensation, depending on the circumstances of their injury.  Typical Jones Act claims include:

  • Maintenance and Cure: The Jones Act entitles injured seaman to maintenance and cure regardless of who’s at fault. Maintenance is a daily allowance to cover the cost of basic necessities, such as food and shelter. Cure is the medical care that the employer must provide until the worker reaches maximum medical improvement. Injured seamen are also entitled to unearned wages until the end of the voyage.
  • Negligence: Under the Jones Act, the vessel owner/employer must pay compensation to his crewmen when his negligence is a cause of the crewman’s injury. An injured seaman is also entitled to recover damages from his employer where he is injured from the negligence of a fellow crewman. The Jones Act also provides protection for crewmen injured ashore – on docks and wharves – if they are injured due to an employer’s negligence, so long as the injured worker was acting within the scope of their employment.
  • Unseaworthiness Claims: Injured seamen can also bring unseaworthiness claims under the Jones Act against the owner of a vessel.  A vessel is unseaworthy if it, its equipment, or its crew are not reasonably fit for their intended purpose.  The vessel owner need not have prior knowledge of the defective condition in order to file an unseaworthy claim under the Jones Act.

Legal Help with Florida Jones Act Claims

If you were injured in a maritime accident, the Jones Act requires that you file personal injury and death actions within 3 years after the cause of action arose.  To increase your odds of obtaining the full compensation the law allows, it’s vital you contact the experienced Florida Jones Act lawyers at Gilman Law LLP today.  With offices throughout Florida, the personal injury attorneys at Gilman Law LLP are available now to answer all of your Jones Act questions.  Please complete our online form or contact Gilman Law LLP at (888) 252-0084 for your free, confidential, no-obligation case evaluation with one of our Jones Act attorneys today.