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Filing a Jones Act Claim


When you’re a maritime worker and have been injured on the job, you may be curious about filing a Jones Act claim. Generally, you’d want to consider filing a claim if you meet any of the following conditions:

  • Your company isn’t paying you maintenance and cure for your injuries.
  • Your company fired you after your injury.
  • Your company didn’t provide a safe place to work.
  • The equipment wasn’t kept up-to-date or was faulty somehow and contributed to your injury.
  • One of your coworkers contributed to your injury somehow (either through improper training, a mistake or being reckless).

Keep in mind, when you file a claim, your coworkers and supervisors aren’t going to have to pay you anything. It’s the company that is ultimately held responsible. These are just a few scenarios in which you’d want to think about filing a Jones Act claim.

Jones Act law says that your company is required to compensate you for the following if you suffered an injury at work (on or off the clock):

  • pain and suffering
  • past and future lost wages
  • past and future medical expenses
  • maintenance and cure

Filing a Jones Act Claim Video Transcript

Courthouse steps, filing a maritime claim

0:07 What does it mean to file a claim under the Jones Act?

0:10 Well, the Jones act is a federal statute that Congress passed years ago in the early 1900s.

0:15 What it essentially means is that if your company did anything wrong at all, it could have been something they actively did wrong or could be something they forgot to do, if your company’s fault played any role at all in your injury, then you’re entitled to seek from your company any type of damage you suffered because of that.

0:32 This includes pain and suffering, it includes lost wages, it includes medical expenses. This goes out into your future also: your future lost wages, your future medical expenses.

0:44 So, the Jones Act can be thought of as sort of a negligence claim, but it’s actually brought against your employer.

0:53 It does not have to be something that your company did as a company. It can be something that your co-employees did. If a supervisor doesn’t do what he should do or if a co-employee that’s helping you on a job does something that causes your injury, your company is ultimately responsible for their actions.

1:09 So, remember the Jones Act is a federal statute. It is very protective of injured seamen and it allows you to seek any type of damage that was caused by your injury or accident, including damages out into the future.

1:22 Let us know if you have any questions at all about the Jones act and whether you qualify for that federal statute.

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