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In a recent Jones Act case, the 1st Court of Appeals, Houston affirmed a $737,644.00 verdict in favor of an injured Jones Act seaman. ??The seaman was injured on a jack-up oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico and fired shortly thereafter. The defendant, Diamond Offshore Management Company, claimed that the accident did not happed or wasn't terribly severe. The jury disagreed, and rendered a $737,644.00 verdict, finding Diamond Offshore 90% negligent and the seaman 10% negligent for a net recovery of $663,906.60, plus post-judgment interest. On appeal, Diamond argued that there was factually and legally sufficient evidence to support the jury's findings that the Jones Act seaman injured his back in the incident. Diamond also argued that the jury should have put more than 10% responsibility on the injured Jones Act seaman.??The 1st Court of Appeals unanimously rejected both arguments. The Texas Supreme Court refused to hear Diamond's request for an appeal. The decision is a victory for Jones Act seamen. The decision affirms the standards of proof in Jones Act cases. The case is styled Diamond Offshore Management Co. v. Lamar Horton, 2006 WL 488654 (Tex.App.-Hous. (1st Dist) (2006). The case was tried by Brian Beckcom of Vujasinovic & Beckcom, L.L.P. and Jeremy Newell of John W. Stevenson & Associates, P.C.
