(310) 773-5207
Recent disruptions in global shipping have increased the possibility that seamen can suffer a stress-related condition at sea. Whether you are filing a Jones Act lawsuit or pursuing maintenance and cure benefits, the California maritime injury attorneys at Law Offices of Preston Easley, APC can help.
Global shipping has been upended by recent events in the Middle East. Even if a vessel is able to travel freely at this point, there is a chance that the captain had to take a much longer route in navigation. There are reports of vessels taking detours around the Cape of Good Hope to avoid problem spots, which can add weeks to a journey. The result is that crew members find themselves in an extremely stressful situation that can result in mental health issues. If this has happened to you, it may be possible for you to obtain maintenance and cure benefits.
Since you are facing a likely difficult legal case regardless of how you choose to pursue compensation, it makes sense to get immediate legal help. Schedule a free initial consultation with a California maritime injury lawyer at the Law Offices of Preston Easley, APC by calling us today at (310) 773-5207.
Maintenance and Cure Benefits Do Not Depend on Fault
Any seaman who suffers any type of injury while in service of a vessel may qualify for maintenance and cure benefits. It is easiest to qualify for maintenance and cure benefits when you have sustained a tangible physical injury that is easily linked to your service on the ship. For example, if you slipped and fell on the deck, you could seek these benefits. You would receive them regardless of whether you ultimately have a Jones Act claim against your employer.
There is nothing that limits maintenance and cure benefits to situations in which you have suffered a physical injury. Seamen can suffer injuries in a variety of ways, and a mental health condition may qualify for maintenance and cure. You may not even have to prove that your illness was connected directly to your service on the vessel. In some ways, this is far broader than a standard workers’ compensation claim, where you may need to establish some type of causation.
You Can Qualify for Maintenance and Cure if Your Injury Was in Service of the Vessel
In a maintenance and cure case, you may be eligible for benefits if you can show that you became sickened or ill while you were in service on the vessel. You may not even have to show that the extra-long voyage was the actual cause of your mental health condition. As long as you can show that you suffered from the condition while you were on the vessel, you should be paid maintenance and cure benefits. You may even be eligible for benefits when you had a pre-existing condition, so long as you can show that it was aggravated by your service, and your mental health issues were not concealed or disabling at the time of your employment.
This doctrine can cut both ways against a seaman. Many seamen may suffer from PTSD from the conditions that they were exposed to during an extra-long voyage. Being deprived of necessities and working under extremely stressful conditions can take its toll, but the seaman may not realize it until after they are at home. It can be a very difficult case to prove that you are entitled to maintenance and cure benefits if you did not suffer any symptoms until you returned. Maintenance and cure benefits are aimed at helping those who are actually injured while on the vessel.
How to Prove That You Were Affected on the Vessel
You may be able to prove that you began to suffer symptoms while you were on the vessel through the following:
- Establishing the exact timeline of when you began to feel unwell
- Providing text messages and other communications that show a contemporaneous record of how you were feeling
- Testimony from witnesses who observed you on board the vessel
- Testimony from a treating mental health professional who can help establish when your symptoms of a condition began
If your symptoms developed due to what happened on the voyage after you came home, your legal remedy may be entirely different. Instead of being able to seek maintenance and cure benefits, you may be able to proceed under the Jones Act. While the extra-long deployment at Sea may have been unavoidable, the employer may have maintained some control over the conditions that you faced while you were on the vessel. If you can show that your mental health condition that you developed after your return home was tied to your employer’s negligence, you may be able to file a Jones Act lawsuit against them. However, this is a different remedy than maintenance and cure, and you must meet a different legal standard to qualify for compensation.
Contact a California Maritime Injury Law Firm
If you were injured or became ill while working aboard a vessel, you may have rights under the Jones Act and maritime law, including maintenance and cure. Learn more by messaging us online or calling us at (310) 773-5207 to speak with a California maritime injury lawyer.
Preston Easley is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD. He served five years of active duty as a Naval officer — three years as a deck officer on a fast frigate and two years as a patrol boat skipper. Mr. Easley also served aboard a tank landing ship in the reserves. Learn more here.
