Maritime Injury Law Blog : Maritime Injury Lawyer & Attorney : Vujasinovic & Beckcom : Jones Act : Serving Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi

Another injured offshore worker recently hired our firm to represent him in his offshore injury case.

Our client was hurt while working offshore on the Adriatic III, an offshore 350 foot jack-up rig currently the Gulf of Mexico. 

He was injured while working for CleanBlast, an offshore services company, while working on the jack-up rig owned and operated by GlobalSantaFe Drilling Company and Transocean Offshore.

We filed our client's lawsuit in Galveston, Texas under the Jones Act and General Maritime law.  He seeks damages for loss of income, medical expenses, future loss of income and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, mental anguish, and costs of court, among other things.

Have you been injured on a jack-up rig or while working for GlobalSantaFe, Transocean, or CleanBlast?

If so, we would be interested in hearing your story.  In many injury cases that happen on jack-up rigs or offshore, the offshore companies will claim it was a "freak accident" that never happened before or that the accident was all the injured worker's fault. 

If you know otherwise, please call our offices toll free at 877.724.7800.  Or use the contact form on this website to send us an email.

Want to know more about offshore injury claims? 

Below are some links to some suggested articles offering helpful tips and advice regarding offshore injury claims.

Click here to read an article with helpful suggestions and tips on how to hire the best lawyer for your offshore injury case.

Curious about the Jones Act?  Click here for a general overview of the Jones Act.

Want to know more about the Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act?  Click here to read the article "What is a Longshoreman and What Are Their Legal Rights When Injured?

Want to know the difference between the Jones Act and the Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act?  Click here to read about the difference between the two.

What to know the truth about offshore injury cases?  Click here to read The Truth About Offshore Injury Claims.

Want to know what you should do after an offshore injury to preserve your legal rights?  Click here to read  What Should You Do If You Are Injured Offshore

If you are hurt and your employer is giving you a hard time, click here to read "I was injured on the job and my employer is giving me a hard time - What should I do"

Employer trying to get you to give a recorded statement?  Click here to learn the truth about recorded statements and the best way to handle this request.

Thinking about trying to settle your offshore injury case without talking to a lawyer first?  Click here to learn why you can settle some cases yourself but in other cases not having a lawyer may be a TERRIBLE MISTAKE.

Want to know what happens when you file an offshore injury or Jones Act case?  Click here to learn about Filing a Jones Act lawsuit.

Click here to learn about 6 Critical Things you must know if you are Injured At Sea

Your employer may be keeping secrets from you if you are hurt offshore.  Click here to read about The Secrets Your Employer May Not Want You To Know If You Are Injured Offshore.

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Our firm receives a lot of calls from workers in the offshore injuries.  We also receive a lot of calls from lawyers with clients who were hurt offshore. 

Often, these lawyers have never handled an offshore injury or wrongful death case and want our advice or want us to accept a case they have been working on.

We are happy to help.  However, it is always much better to call us soon after your injury or accident claim. 

Why?  Because if you don't, you may accidentally do something to sink your case before it even gets started. 

We see the same mistakes again and again.  They are easy to avoid.  But if you've never been in the situation before, you may not even know you are making a mistake before it's already made.

Here are five common mistakes that can sink your offshore injury claim:

1.  Not reporting your accident immediately. 

If you don't report your accident, the company will claim it didn't happen and basically call you a liar.  It is especially important to report your accident immediately if there were no witnesses.

2.  Giving the company or insurance people a written or recorded statement before you talk to a lawyer.

If you are hurt, the company (or its insurance people) will try to get you to give a tape-recorded statement or to sign a written statement.  DON'T DO IT!.  The company (and its insurance people) are experts at tricking you into saying something that may haunt you later on.

It is, however, okay to give a brief description on the company accident report.

3.  Not seeking medical care immediately.

Again, if you do not seek medical care immediately and try to "tough it out" instead, the company will claim that you're making up the injury later.  If you think there is any chance you were hurt, seek good medical care.

4.  Hiding past accidents from your lawyer

Many offshore workers have suffered more than one accident because the nature of the work is so dangerous.  You need to let your lawyer know about your other injuries.  If you don't, and you are caught in a lie, it will destroy your credibility and damage your case severely.

If you are honest, however, most of the time previous injuries are not that big of a deal.

5.  Hiring a lawyer who has never handled a Jones Act or maritime injury case

Don't hire the first lawyer you talk to!  Don't hire a lawyer just because a friend recommends him or her.  Don't hire a lawyer because that lawyer shouts the loudest or has the most commercials.

Hire a lawyer you like, who deals with you openly and honestly, and most important, hire a lawyer who actually has experience handling cases like yours.

Want to know more about offshore injury claims? 

Below are some links to some suggested articles offering helpful tips and advice regarding offshore injury claims.

Click here to read an article with helpful suggestions and tips on how to hire the best lawyer for your offshore injury case.

Curious about the Jones Act?  Click here for a general overview of the Jones Act.

Want to know more about the Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act?  Click here to read the article "What is a Longshoreman and What Are Their Legal Rights When Injured?

Want to know the difference between the Jones Act and the Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act?  Click here to read about the difference between the two.

What to know the truth about offshore injury cases?  Click here to read The Truth About Offshore Injury Claims.

Want to know what you should do after an offshore injury to preserve your legal rights?  Click here to read  What Should You Do If You Are Injured Offshore

If you are hurt and your employer is giving you a hard time, click here to read "I was injured on the job and my employer is giving me a hard time - What should I do"

Employer trying to get you to give a recorded statement?  Click here to learn the truth about recorded statements and the best way to handle this request.

Thinking about trying to settle your offshore injury case without talking to a lawyer first?  Click here to learn why you can settle some cases yourself but in other cases not having a lawyer may be a TERRIBLE MISTAKE.

Want to know what happens when you file an offshore injury or Jones Act case?  Click here to learn about Filing a Jones Act lawsuit.

Click here to learn about 6 Critical Things you must know if you are Injured At Sea

Your employer may be keeping secrets from you if you are hurt offshore.  Click here to read about The Secrets Your Employer May Not Want You To Know If You Are Injured Offshore.

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Question:

I was injured offshore.  I was working for an oil company on an offshore jack-up rig (or oil platform).  What legal rights do I have to recover fair compensation for my injuries?

Answer:

We get these kinds of questions a lot probably because a lot of offshore oil workers call us to represent them.

With the increase in oil prices and the demand for more oil to feed our economy, the oil companies are doing more drilling and exploration for oil in the Gulf of Mexico and other deepwater sites. 

Unfortunately, that means more men and women in the oil industry face the risk of serious injury, or even death.

So what are your legal rights if you are injured offshore working for an oil company on a jack-up rig or platform?

If you are on a jack-up rig, you are probably a Jones Act seaman entitled to legal protection under the Jones Act and general maritime law.  However, this may not be true if your attachment to the jack-up rig was short in duration or substance. 

You will need an experienced Jones Act attorney to look at the facts of your case and answer the question for you.

If you are hurt on a non-movable fixed platform, then you are probably not a Jones Act seaman.  That means you could be a Longshoreman entitled to benefits under the Longshore & Harbor Worker's Compensation Act, or you may be able to bring a case under general maritime law, or state worker's compensation laws, or maybe, maybe even the Jones Act

The legal analysis can get pretty tricky.  You should probably hire a really competent and experienced Jones Act attorney to give you some answers to this question.

You can also visit our main website, www.vbattorneys.com, or our dedicated maritime law website, www.maritimeaccidentattorney.com, for more answers to many common questions.

Want to know more about offshore injury claims? 

Below are some links to some suggested articles offering helpful tips and advice regarding offshore injury claims.

Click here to read an article with helpful suggestions and tips on how to hire the best lawyer for your offshore injury case.

Curious about the Jones Act?  Click here for a general overview of the Jones Act.

Want to know more about the Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act?  Click here to read the article "What is a Longshoreman and What Are Their Legal Rights When Injured?

Want to know the difference between the Jones Act and the Longshore and Harbor Worker's Compensation Act?  Click here to read about the difference between the two.

What to know the truth about offshore injury cases?  Click here to read The Truth About Offshore Injury Claims.

Want to know what you should do after an offshore injury to preserve your legal rights?  Click here to read  What Should You Do If You Are Injured Offshore

If you are hurt and your employer is giving you a hard time, click here to read "I was injured on the job and my employer is giving me a hard time - What should I do"

Employer trying to get you to give a recorded statement?  Click here to learn the truth about recorded statements and the best way to handle this request.

Thinking about trying to settle your offshore injury case without talking to a lawyer first?  Click here to learn why you can settle some cases yourself but in other cases not having a lawyer may be a TERRIBLE MISTAKE.

Want to know what happens when you file an offshore injury or Jones Act case?  Click here to learn about Filing a Jones Act lawsuit.

Click here to learn about 6 Critical Things you must know if you are Injured At Sea

Your employer may be keeping secrets from you if you are hurt offshore.  Click here to read about The Secrets Your Employer May Not Want You To Know If You Are Injured Offshore.

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Selecting the Right Lawyer May Be The Most Important Decision You Make
By Brian Beckcom

When you suffer a serious injury working offshore, or if a loved one is killed working offshore, selecting which lawyer will represent you in your case is one of the most important decision you will ever make for your case, if not the most important decision.  If your injury is career-threatening or career ending, or if the family breadwinner has been killed or disabled, obtaining a good monetary result in your case may be the most important thing that could happen financially.

Frankly, not many lawyers handle Jones Act, Longshore, Injury at Sea, or Maritime Injury cases on a regular basis. 

In fact, the vast majority of lawyers have never handled a Jones Act or Maritime Injury case in their entire career.

Now, some lawyers will tell you they have experience or are able to handle your case.  But before you hire a lawyer to handle any offshore injury case, you should consider the following five things:

1.  Don't hire the first lawyer you talk to.  Interview more than one lawyer.  Hiring a lawyer is a very personal decision.  Some lawyers are great for particular clients and some just don't "fit" right.  So shop around a little before making your decision.

2.  Ask the lawyer directly how many offshore injury cases he or she has handled in his or her entire career.  If the lawyer doesn't give you a direct answer, consider finding another lawyer to represent you.

3.  Ask the lawyer if he or she is board-certified in any field of law? 

4.  Find out about past case results by asking the lawyer for a list of case results.  Any competent lawyer should be able to provide this to you relatively easily.

5.  Ask the lawyer whether he has ever published any articles or given any speeches on Jones Act, Longshore, or Maritime Injury cases.  Obviously, it is not necessary for the lawyer to have published articles for he or she to be a good lawyer--but it doesn't hurt.

Remember, hiring a lawyer is a personal decision and you certainly don't have to hire the first one you interview.  You should shop around a little bit, ask the right questions, and only hire an attorney once you are satisfied with the answers to your questions and comfortable with the attorney and his assistants on a personal level.


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About the author

Brian Beckcom is a board-certified personal injury trial lawyer with extensive experience handling serious personal injury and wrongful death matters, including Jones Act, Longshore, and General Maritime Injury cases.

Mr. Beckcom practices at Vujasinovic & Beckcom, P.L.L.C., a Houston-based law firm with a national practice.

To contact Mr. Beckcom and schedule an appointment to discuss your legal matter, call toll free 877.724.7800.

To learn more about the Mr. Beckcom and his firm's practice, visit the following websites:

www.vbattorneys.com
www.maritimeaccidentattorney.com
www.themaritimelawyer.com

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SEAMEN'S ALERT

Houston, Texas - December 22, 2007

If you are injured offshore, you SHOULD NOT sign any paperwork given to you by your employer UNTIL YOU HAVE HAD THE PAPERS REVIEWED BY YOUR OWN, INDEPENDENT ATTORNEY!.  Unless, of course, you want to eliminate or severely limit your legal rights.

Recently, many employers (including K-Sea Transportation Co., Weeks Marine, and Great Lakes Dredging) have coerced their injured workers into signing papers after they are hurt which severely limit the injured workers' rights in court.  In some cases, signing these papers may result in the injured worker loosing thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars.

So unless you want to lose your legal rights, or severely limit, do not sign any papers given to you by your employer after you are hurt unless you have those papers reviewed by an independent lawyer you select.  (In other words, don't rely on legal advise from a company-selected lawyer).

If you want to read a case where an injured worker basically signed away many of his legal rights, look at Barbieri v. K-Sea Transportation Corp., 2006 WL 3751215 (E.D.N.Y. Dec. 19, 2006).

Mr. Beckcom is a Board-Certified Personal Injury Lawyer who represents individuals and families.  Mr. Beckcom represents injured offshore workers and railroad workers in Texas and across the nation and the world. 

If you would like to speak with Mr. Beckcom about your potential legal case, you can call his law firm and schedule a telephone conference.  The toll free number is 877.724.7800

You can visit one of the firm's website to learn more about what we do:

www.vbattorneys.com
www.themaritimelawyer.com
www.maritimeaccidentattorney.com

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About the firm

Vujasinovic & Beckcom, P.L.L.C. is a firm of board certified personal injury trial lawyers who handle serious injury and death cases, as well as business and insurance cases, on a contingency fee basis. 

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