Our maritime trial lawyers were able to recover $1.5 million in a settlement for a crewmember injured in a messenger line accident while working on a fishing boat. The crewman had just placed the messenger line over the starboard spreader bar when the accident happened.

After the plaintiff put down the line, it went taut, struck him on the right side of his torso, lifted him up by his right armpit and threw him up into the air. The crewman came down from the air onto the frame of the spare net cage/pen.

The plaintiff suffered several injuries in the accident:

• A right axillary and subclavian artery dissection, which resulted in RUE ischemia and nerve damage;
• Numerous broken bones, including breaks to the ribs and scapular spine, multiple scapula fractures and a sternal fracture;
• Herniated discs;
• Acute nerve denervation, brachial plexopathy and axillary nerve injury, which resulted in him losing almost the entire anterior half of his deltoid.

These injuries left the plaintiff with limited grip strength in his hand and function in his arm, and an inability to lift his whole arm up and down in any manner.

Is My Employer Keeping My Fishing Boat Safe?

Maritime laws such as the Jones Act are meant to deter commercial fishing boat owners from failing to provide their employees with a safe work environment. However, despite the threat of such laws, many of these employers still choose to prioritize profits over the lives and well-being of their workers, including:

• Failing to provide proper safety procedures or equipment
• Subpar equipment maintenance
• Failing to prevent assault onboard the vessel

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Latti & Anderson LLP – Nationwide Maritime Attorneys