Injured seamen are entitled to maintenance, cure and unearned wages, regardless of fault. The shipowner’s duty to pay these benefits is a “sacred obligation.” Willful breach of the obligation gave rise to a claim for punitive damages. In 1990, however, the U.S. Supreme court decided the case of Miles v. Apex Marine Corp., 498 U.S….
A collision at sea near Hong Kong between a passenger vessel and a ferry killed at least 38. The Monday night crash was Hong Kong’s deadliest accident in more than 15 years, and the worst maritime accident in more than 40. The ferry involved, the SEA SMOOTH, has a top speed of almost 45 kph…
Coast Guard rescue crews have called off the search for a commercial fisherman who went missing after the fishing vessel MAVERICK sank off the coast of LaPush Friday morning, September 28, according to a Coast Guard spokesman. A Coast Guard helicopter based at Coast Guard Air Station/Sector Field Office Port Angeles on Ediz Hook conducted…
The Coast Guard confirmed that a W&T Offshore gas platform located in the Gulf of Mexico caught fire Wednesday morning, forcing three workers to evacuate. Two of the workers suffered minor injuries as they evacuated the platform, which is located in 120 feet of water about 29 miles south of Terrebonne Parrish, La.’s Dernieres Barrier…
The Virginia Supreme Court has reinstated a $2 million award it struck down earlier this year in an asbestos lawsuit against John Crane, Inc. In March, the court vacated awards totaling more than $3 million in a lawsuit filed by Robert Hardick, who alleged exposure to asbestos while a Navy seaman, before he passed away….
This past weekend Coast Guard Sector Anchorage received a mayday call from crewmembers of the 110′ commercial fishing vessel, the F/V MOONLIGHT MAID. The fishing vessel encountered high winds and 13′ seas before when it began taking on water. At the time, the fishing vessel was more than 30 miles south of Resurrection Bay. A…
A Magone Marine boat sank in Unalaska Thursday morning, spilling a small amount of diesel fuel. Coast Guard Lt. Jim Fothergill says it’s not clear why the landing craft JOSHUA sank while tied up at the dock. The vessel leaked 10 gallons of diesel into the water before Magone personnel were able to stop the…
The skipper of a Kodiak-based fishing vessel ADVANTAGE died Friday after the boat sank, authorities said. One crew member was missing and two others were recovering from hypothermia. Four helicopter searches failed to find the crewman missing from the 58-foot ADVANTAGE, Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st Class Sara Francis said. An airplane continued the search….
ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Three crewmembers were rescued from a fishing boat Friday after it sank south of Kodiak Island but one crewman remained missing, the Coast Guard said. As first reported by Kodiak Public Radio, KMXT-FM, the search for the missing crewman aboard the 58-foot vessel ADVANTAGE began shortly after midnight. The Coast Guard was…
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, a division of the Center for Disease Control, recently published studies on the fatality rates for the commercial fishing industry for the past decade. The reports confirmed that commercial fishing is one of the most dangerous occupations in the United States from 2000 – 2010. As many…
There was no time that Nick was ever unavailable for me. That’s what I call a friend. That is somebody who cares.
Past Client of BoatLaw Commercial Fisherman, Southeast Alaska
