Diving Injuries - Are Diving Injuries Covered Under the Jones Act?

Diving Accident Law
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\nAt Vujasinovic & Beckcom, L.L.P., we handle diving accident and injury cases.
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\nOne of the first questions in these cases, particularly in commercial diving cases, is whether the Jones Act covers commercial divers.
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\nIn 1992, in Ashley v. Epic Divers, Inc., the dive company argued that one of its employees, a freelance diver, was not a Jones Act seaman. The Court agreed. The Court reasoned that the diver was assigned to different vessels owned by differet owners and was therefore not a Jones Act seaman.
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\nDive companies have used this ruling to argue that divers only get Longshore benefits under the Longshore & Harbor Worker's Compensation Act.
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\nIn 1995, 1997, and 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a series of opinions that provided some additional guidance on the question "Who is a seaman?" In these opinions, the Court focuses on the nature of the worker's work, not on some arbitrary "snapshot" test.
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\nCurrently, most commercial divers who are injured offshore will be Jones Act seamen. But like in most maritime and Jones Act cases, when you hire a lawyer, you need to hire a dive accident lawyer, not a general practitioner, or you risk losing lots of legal rights.
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\nDiving Accident & Injuries - Proving Negligence
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\nGenerally, diving companies are responsible for diving accidents & injuries if they are guilty of doing something that a reasonably prudent diving company would not do.
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\nWhat this basically means is that diving companies must follow standard policies and procedures, Coast Guard regulations, etc.
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\nUnfortunately, in too many cases, the diving company fails to follow standard procedures or cuts corners on safety, resulting in serious diving injuries or even death.
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\nThe following are some examples of situations where a dive accident occured as a result of company negligence:
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\n-lmproper decompression tables
\n-improper use of decompression tables
\n-using experimental tables
\n-operating outside the dive table limits
\n-ascending too fast
\n-improper medical treatment
\n-using improper equipment
\n-not enough manpower
\n-operating unsafely
\n-violating company or Coast Guard policies, or having inadequte or inappropriate company policies.
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\nDiving injuries and accidents can be very serious, even life threatening. If you have experience a diving accident or injury, you should seek experienced legal representation in the form of a diving accident lawyer.
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\nTo learn more about the Jones Act and maritime law, please visit the other posts on this website, or visit our dedicated maritime law website, http://www.themaritimelawyer.com