What do a Houma deckhand, a LOOP worker and a passenger on the capsized Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia have in common? Using the wrong maritime lawyer can tank their cases. A New York law firm announced it is going to file a single lawsuit in Miami on behalf of “a number of injured passengers” who were aboard the Costa Concordia, reports Fox News.com. The ship’s operator, Carnival Corporation, is based in Miami. However, legal experts argue that a major roadblock exists in filing a lawsuit in the U.S. because the fine print on the back of passenger tickets says lawsuits must be filed in the nation that the vessel is based. Costa Cruises’ headquarters is in Genoa, Italy. If the court decides the U.S. is not a proper venue, valuable time will be lost in seeking justice for the passengers, not to mention raising and then dashing their hopes. There will be significant challenges for the plaintiffs should their case end up in the Italian court system which requires passengers to post 10% of the award up front. So if a passenger seeks $2,000,000 in damages, $200,000 must be posted immediately. Then another $200,000 to $300,000 in Italian attorney’s fees will be paid over the next four or five years before the case goes to a jury, Coral Gables, Fla. attorney Gabrielle D’Alemberte wrote in the Miami Herald. What does this have to do with the Houma deckhand and LOOP worker? It is an example of the complexity of maritime law and the importance of finding an attorney who will file in the proper venue and under the proper maritime division, i.e. Jones Act instead of LHWCA. In 2010, we wrote about a tug worker’s Jones Act lawsuit that was invalidated because it was filed in the wrong venue, the statute of limitations had expired and because of a typographical error. If you live in Houma or work on the LOOP and are injured on the job, call the Board Certified Maritime Attorneys of Vujasinovic & Beckcom for a free consultation at 877-724-7800. Feel free to order one of our consumer reports on protecting your legal rights that are available on this site. We will send it to you free of charge.
Category: Hiring A Lawyer
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