In a unanimous ruling earlier this month, the Supreme Court in Bissonnette, et al., v. LePage Bakeries Park St., LLC, et al., 601 U.S. ----144 S.Ct. 905 (2024) held that transportation workers need not work for a company in...more
Arbitration agreements with warehouse workers and others who play a “direct and necessary role” in the transportation of goods and people may fall within the “transportation worker exemption” to the Federal Arbitration Act...more
A couple of recent cases from the Eastern District of Louisiana provide useful guidance on the limits of maintenance and cure obligations. Given that failure to pay maintenance and cure can give rise to a claim for...more
At first glance, the waters can be murky when wading through a determination of a maritime employee’s status as a Jones Act seaman or a longshoreman. The determination of whether an individual is a Jones Act seaman or...more
Advanced Wage Agreements offer to pay “advanced wages" to an injured seaman, in addition to the legal obligations to pay maintenance and cure, in exchange for the seaman agreeing to arbitrate his personal injury claim if and...more
In denying an en banc rehearing of Adams v. All Coast, LLC, the Fifth Circuit held that not all Jones Act Seamen are FLSA Seamen. In Adams, as we detailed in February, the Court had reversed a district court ruling finding...more
Since the enactment of the Jones Act, courts have wrestled to define "seaman" and who is entitled to remedies under the Jones Act. The Jones Act grants a "seaman" a negligence cause of action against his employer and only a...more
The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals sitting en banc recently rendered an important opinion for all employers of maritime workers who look to define their employees as either “seamen” or “other maritime workers.” In...more
On May 11, 2021, the Fifth Circuit, sitting en banc, walked some of its precedent off the plank when it reexamined who qualifies as a “seaman” under the Jones Act. Apart from general maritime law, the Jones Act provides...more
Owners and operators of ships calling on the United States know well that criminal prosecutions are now a regular occurrence in the maritime industry. Most relate to environmental violations and post-incident conduct like...more
Steady, helmsman! Steady. This is the sort of weather when brave hearts snap ashore, and keeled hulls split at sea. Moby Dick, Herman Melville, Chap. XL - Since the Supreme Court’s (Justice Thomas’s) landmark decision in...more
A circuit split may be emerging after the Second Circuit Court of Appeals’ unanimous decision in Matter of Buchanan Marine, L.P., – F.3d –, No. 16-1092 (2d Cir. Oct. 27, 2017) (Kearse, Cabranes, Chin, J.) affirming a New York...more
A recent federal court decision may bring about a new wave of overtime claims by offshore workers, particularly those working within the territorial waters of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas (Halle v. Galliano Marine...more
In May 2015 a U.S. District Court and U.S. Court of Appeals each issued opinions that address important legal issues concerning risk management in the offshore energy industry. In Marquette Transportation Co. Gulf-Inland, LLC...more
Action Item: Owners, operators, and other interested parties related to the operation of marine terminals should review and comment on a Coast Guard Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) addressing new requirements to...more
In McBride v. Estis Well Service, LLC, the federal 5th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that punitive damages are not available to seamen under the Jones Act or under general maritime law. In those cases, recovery is...more
A wave of FLSA collective (class) actions have been filed against scores of marine shipping and towing companies in the Gulf States for violation of the FLSA. Specifically, these suits claim that the commonly used “day-rate”...more
On November 13, 2014, the Fifth Circuit handed down its opinion in Coffin v. Blessey Marine Services, Inc., No. 13-20144, 2014 WL 5904734 (5th Cir. Nov. 13, 2014). The opinion addressed several key factors related to the...more
In a much and long anticipated ruling, the Fifth Circuit in Coffin v. Blessey Marine Services, Inc., No. 13-20144 (5th Cir. Nov. 13, 2014), has held as a matter of law that vessel-based tankermen (specially...more