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Calculating settlement amount for your Jones Act legal case

One of the most common questions we get from our maritime injury clients is "What is my case worth?"

First, every single case is different. Even if your case seems exactly the same as someone else's case, it is not. Period.

However, you can use other cases to get a general range for what would be a reasonable and fair settlement for your case.

Second, you need to remember that your employer (or its insurance company) is probably going to try to make you a low-ball settlement offer pretty quickly. And the offer will almost always be unfairly low.

In fact, I have seen cases where the maritime employer offered an employee with a permanent career-ending injury less than $2,000.00.

Third, your employer, maybe the company doctor, and the insurance company will almost surely tell you not to hire your own attorney. While this may be appropriate in minor injury cases, in any serious injury case you probably need solid trustworthy advice from a maritime injury attorney.

With that said, I am now going to explain in general how case values can be calculated in a Jones Act settlement or a maritime injury settlement.

Calculating Settlements in Jones Act Cases

The first thing you need to understand is that you are entitled to Maintenance and Cure regardless of whether anyone was at fault or not.

Click here to read about Maintenance and Cure.

You must prove that your injury or illness "manifested" itself on the vessel. This is usually a big part of the fight.

If you can prove an injury or illness "manifested" itself on the vessel, then you will be entitled to have your medical bills paid until you reach maximum medical improvement. You will also be entitled to "maintenance" until you reach maximum medical improvement. Maintenance is usually in the range of $15 - $45 / day.

Settlement Values if you Prove negligence or unseaworthiness

If your injury was caused by negligence or the ship's unseaworthiness, then you will legally entitled to additional damages.

If you were partially at fault, your total settlement or jury verdict will ultimately be reduced by the percentage of fault allocated to you.

So, for example, if the total settlement value of your case is $100,000.00, but it is determined that you were 50% at fault, the total amount would be reduced by $50,000.00.

In a Jones Act settlement, the law determines what damages you may receive. Here is a list of the damages you may receive in a Jones Act case.

Wage Loss in the Past;
Medical Bills you have incurred (but not if they've already been paid, obviously);
Your loss of earning capacity in the future;
The loss of any fringe benefits like insurance or 401(k);
Rehabilitation costs in the future;
The cost of future medicine and medical treatment;
The cost of any medical equipment you may need in the future;
The cost of any job retraining;
Pain and Suffering you have endured;
Pain and Suffering you will endure in the future as a result of your injury;
Mental Anguish you have endured;
Mental Anguish you will endure in the future as a result of your injury;
Disfigurement in the past and in the future;
Loss of quality of life, past and future;
Impairment damages, past and future;

To determine an appropriate settlement value, you just put a dollar amount for each category above (if applicable in your case) and add them together to get a total amount.

Then you take out any percentage of negligence on your part.

Also, the court may add your court costs to any jury verdict.

Once you have added these figures together, you should be able to come up with a reasonable settlement amount for your Jones Act or maritime injury case.

Want to know more about maritime injury law?

If you want to know more about maritime injury law, please continue researching your case on this website.

You can also read the articles on our dedicated maritime law blog. The Maritime Lawyer.

Or, if you want a copy of Mr. Beckcom's informative book, "Insider's Guide To Winning Your Maritime Injury Case, then go to www.JonesActBook.com and fill out the forms. We'll send a copy to you by email or regular mail immediately.

You can also call our toll free number, 877.724.7800 and request a copy of the book.