Many of our potential clients who are searching for a Louisiana Jones Act lawyer have accidents or injuries which occur while they are on land, working off of the oil rig or vessel to which they are assigned. These clients typically want to know whether or not their injuries are covered under the Jones Act and maritime law.
The answer is yes, injuries or accidents which occur on land can still be covered under the Jones Act provided you qualify as a Jones Act marine worker. In other words, once you are determined to be a Jones Act seaman, even if you are injured on land, your injury will still be covered under the Jones Act.
In order to qualify as a Jones Act seaman, you must be more or less permanently assigned to a vessel or fleet of vessels under common ownership or control. This generally means that you must spend 30 percent or more of your time assigned to a particular vessel or fleet of vessels. This includes oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico as well as overseas. Once you are determined to be a Jones Act seaman, it does not matter if your company transfers you to land for a brief temporary assignment. Also, it does not matter if you happen to be on land traveling to or from the rig when your accident or injury occurs. Under these situations, you can still file a claim under the Jones Act even though your injury did not occur on the vessel or oil rig.
Another important thing to remember is that if you are allowed to file a claim with a Louisiana Jones Act lawyer, all of the protections under the Jones Act apply to your case. This means that even if your injury occurs on land, your employer must still provide you with “a safe place to work” as required by the Jones Act. There are numerous cases involving seamen who are injured while traveling to and from work in automobile accidents. Even though these individuals were on land and their injuries and accidents had nothing to do with the vessel or oil rig, they are still allowed to file claims under the Jones Act and seek all damages due to any negligence on the part of their company.
If you have suffered an injury while on land but you were assigned to work aboard a vessel or oil rig, it is important that you pursue any claim you may have under the Jones Act with a Louisiana maritime lawyer.
Don’t think that simply because your injury and accident occurred on land it means that you cannot file a claim under the Jones Act! Remember, once you are determined to be a seaman, the Jones Act will apply to your case regardless of whether or not your injury occurs on land.
More articles about Jones Act coverage:
