The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the most populous of the six states that make up the New England region of the United States. The Bay State is known for its lobster, scallops and commercial groundfishing industries. Ports in Massachusetts include the Port of Boston, Port of Fall River, Port of New Bedford, Beverly Harbor, Cape Cod Canal, Cuttyhunk Harbor, Edgartown Harbor, Port of Fall River, Falmouth Harbor, Gloucester Harbor, Hyannis Harbor, Lynn Harbor, Marblehead Harbor, Nantucket Harbor, Port of New Bedford, Newburyport Harbor, Oak Bluffs Harbor, Port of Plymouth, Port of Provincetown, Fore River Shipyard, Rockport Harbor, Port of Salem, Port of Sandwich, Scituate Harbor, Vineyard Haven Harbor and Woods Hole Harbor.

In its annual report on American fisheries last year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said New Bedford was the leading US port in terms of value of commercial fishery landings. Massachusetts was second among all states in terms of value of landings with $565.2 million. According to NOAA, Massachusetts landed 521,000 pounds of Atlantic mackerel, 8.8 million pounds of surf clams, 1.6 million pounds of soft clams, 13.7 million pounds of lobster and 33 million pounds of scallops.

However, it should be noted that NOAA Fisheries announced final management measures this past April for the Northeast groundfish fishery that included much lower quotas for some key groundfish stocks. While quotas will be reduced on nine stocks of cod, haddock and flounder, NOAA said that the 2013 quotas for nearly half of these stocks are higher than what fishermen actually caught in the last fishing year. The announcement was based largely on advice from the New England Fishery Management Council, and NOAA said it is implementing an increase in quota for healthier stocks such as redfish, white hake, and Pollock as well as access to spiny dogfish and redfish.

Education and Transportation

Massachusetts houses the nation’s oldest public elementary school, The Mather School, founded in 1639, as well as the oldest college, Harvard University, founded in 1636. Altogether, Massachusetts boasts 121 schools of higher education, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, and Boston College. Massachusetts provides rail service, bus services, and an airport for public transportation. Amtrak operates an inter-city rail that provides services to major cities in the state. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority provides bus, subway and ferry systems in the Metro Boston area, including longer distance commuter rail services. The major airport in Massachusetts is the Logan International Airport, which served over 28 million people in 2007 and is used by almost 50 different airlines.

Massachusetts Maritime Trial Lawyers

Latti & Anderson LLP helps commercial fishermen as well as many other types of maritime workers in Massachusetts. We have represented clients throughout New England and all over the United States for more than a half-century, and the multi-million dollar verdicts and settlements we have obtained for injured seamen and their families includes a $1.7 million settlement for the estate of a crewmember killed approximately 130 miles east of Cape Ann. You should know that you could be entitled to compensation under the Jones Act if you sustained catastrophic injuries or your loved one was killed while working on a vessel and doing the vessel’s work. Use the form on this page to have our Jones Act attorneys review your case or contact our firm today at (800) 392-6072 to schedule a free consultation.

Latti & Anderson LLP – Jones Act lawyers