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Injured Seafarers Can Turn to Us Anywhere in the U.S. Locations in both Texas and Louisiana. Here the full details you should know about Houston Maritime Attorneys: Seafarers, like workers in any other profession, are vulnerable to accidents while on the clock. The courts are aware of this and strive tirelessly to ensure that injured sailors are protected under general maritime law. Workers injured while working offshore or in the marine business have the right to seek compensation under maritime law in the event that they incur any medical expenses as a result of their injuries. Maritime law is based on the following statutes: Seamen’s injuries are governed by general maritime law. Before digging into the subsequent acts, it is vital to have a thorough understanding of the general law. How to Choose the Right Maritime Injury Attorney Maritime law is notoriously intricate. Although these statutes were enacted to safeguard the interests of wounded or ill maritime workers, they can be complex. This is why it’s so important to hire a lawyer with experience in the relevant field. Choosing a maritime lawyer with experience is crucial. You should ask a potential lawyer how many marine cases they have tried before making a decision. Do not settle for an attorney who avoids answering your questions directly; instead, get one who will respond in a straightforward manner. The Basics of Maritime Law General maritime law and federal acts both contribute to what is known as “maritime law.” In cases involving ships and their passengers or crew, these sources explain some of the nautical concepts that are typically applied. Maritime law lays out many of the fundamental legal principles that pertain to the sea and sailors, such as: RELATED: know the History of Admiralty & Maritime Law Accidents that occur on international waters are governed by maritime law, often known as admiralty law, which is nearly as old as the shipping industry itself. The unwritten norms of Egyptian and Greek sailors are the inspiration for this legislation. Rhodes, a Greek island, however, developed the first official codes in 900 BC. Ancient marine conventions and rules served as the basis for the development of modern maritime law and code. For instance, the early Rhodian shipping customs can be traced back to the Doctrine of General Average, which states that all parties involved in a sea cargo transaction (owner, shipper, etc.) equally share any damage or losses that may occur as a result of a voluntary sacrifice of part of the vessel or cargo to save the whole. Eleanor of Aquitaine, when on the Second Crusade with her first husband, King Louis VII of France, brought back the idea of a separate judicial body managing marine matters to the West. The phrase “admiralty law” originated with the British admiralty courts, which handled marine cases independently from the common law courts in England. After the Constitution was enacted, the United States eventually adopted the revised admiralty laws as part of our legal system because they were based on the British system. When Does Maritime Law Apply? here are the details Perhaps most obviously, maritime law governs situations that take place on the high seas, i.e., mishaps that take place outside the borders of any nation. In addition, the seas within a 12-mile arc from the coast are considered part of the territorial sea and are thus subject to maritime law. The law’s applicability, however, gets murkier the further inland one travels. There was a moment in early American history when the Great Lakes and other nontidal inland rivers were not covered by maritime law. However, barriers to participation began to crumble over the nineteenth century. The application of maritime law to “navigable waters” is currently the norm. When used alone or in conjunction with other bodies of water, a canal is considered navigable if it can function as a “continued highway over which commerce is or may be carried on with other States or foreign countries.” Therefore, for the purposes of admiralty jurisdiction, a body of water is not considered navigable if it is totally landlocked inside a single state. But a river or other body of water doesn’t have to cross state lines in order to be considered navigable. It is possible to classify a body of water as navigable if it is part of a network of waterways that can be used to support cross-border trade. One final criterion is whether or not goods and services from one state can be transported to consumers in another state or even another nation. Once this threshold is crossed, it is likely that maritime law will apply, even if the vessel is being used for recreational purposes. Jurisdiction in Maritime Law Cases In the U.S., jurisdiction over admiralty law disputes was originally granted to the federal courts. In modern times, however, the Saving to Suitors Clause in Section 1333 of Title 28 of the United States Code allows both state and federal courts to hear most admiralty cases. Any dispute concerning maritime property, however, must be heard in a federal court. When a state court has jurisdiction over an admiralty case, that court must follow the rules of admiralty law. Maritime Law as It Applies to Employers The law of the sea requires ship owners to keep their vessels in a specific condition. Owners and employers have a responsibility to ensure that their ships are maintained in a way that keeps everyone on board safe. The owner of a ship is legally responsible for crewing, equipping, and provisioning the ship. Therefore, the owner will be responsible for any damages sustained by the crew in the event of an illness or injury sustained by crew members as a result of the ship’s unseaworthiness. How Does Maritime Law Provide for Hurt Workers? know aboout it Injured sailors would have to bear the burden of their injuries on their own in the absence of maritime law. If a crew member becomes hurt or sick while on the ship, the … Read more