What this equates to is a floating city. With this many passengers and crew, there are bound to be accidents and injuries. Most passenger injuries that occur at sea involve slip or trip and falls, food-borne illnesses, or excursion injury claims. Crew claims usually involve work-related accidents that result in injuries.
If you have been injured as a passenger on a cruise line, you must know your rights. Under your contract of passage (your ticket) you are required to file your claim in Federal Court within one year and in a certain jurisdiction. The big three lines (Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Norwegian) all require an injured passenger to file in Federal Court in Miami. Other lines, such as Princess and Holland America, require suit to be filed in Los Angeles and Seattle.
If you are a crew member who has been injured on the job, you may have a Jones Act case. However, most cruise lines have a forced arbitration clause in their employment contracts with their employees. This requires the injured crewmember to take their claim to an arbitration panel. This panel is made up of three arbitration “judges” who will decide on the crewmember’s case. Unfortunately, these arbitrators are selected by the cruise line.
Selecting an attorney well versed in maritime law is important if you want to get the most out of your claim. The attorneys at LaBovick Law Group have a team who concentrates their practice on maritime injury claims. If you have been injured on a cruise line, call today for a free case evaluation.
