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713-396-3964
The Fifth Circuit’s recent en banc decision in Sanchez v. Smart Fabricators of Texas, L.L.C., No. 19 20506,2021 WL 1882565 (5th Cir. May 11, 2021) upends 20 years of its own precedent and reformulates the seaman status analysis. The plaintiff in the lawsuit was a...
Workplace accidents are normally due to a failure to follow standards set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Every fiscal year, OSHA publishes a list of the Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards to educate employers as to the commonly cited...
In Sanchez v. Smart Fabricators, a unanimous, en banc decision of the 5th Circuit upended existing precedent in greatly narrowing the critical threshold issue of who qualifies as a seaman under the Jones Act. As one of the leading personal injury firms in the nation,...
Two Houston companies appear to have been involved in a wild well fire that occurred along the Louisiana coast last month and resulted in severe burn injuries to workers attempting to plug an abandoned well. The well leak reportedly began days earlier about 18 miles...
The availability of emotional injury claims in maritime law is unsettled. As it stands, recovery of purely emotional injuries requires proof of an attendant physical injury—or at least emotional injuries that present with concurrent physical symptoms. But a recent...
From the inside of your home to the workplace, carbon monoxide is an ever-present threat, and is the leading cause of death from unintentional poisoning. Each year, more than 430 Americans die from unintentional CO poisoning not linked to fire and more than 50,000...
An often overlooked component and independent cause of action in maritime injury claims is infliction of emotional distress. If you have been involved in accident and sustained psychological injury such as substantial distress, anxiety, grief, depression, insomnia, or...
Pilots, captains, and wheelmen are all primarily tasked with the safety of their crew and passengers. These seaman are also responsible for the safe navigation of their vessels, no matter the size or type of cargo. Some of the work shifts last 12-hours instead of...
An industrial incident in Chambers County, Texas on early Sunday morning left one lineman dead and another in critical condition. The incident occurred just outside the city limits of Mont Belvieu, Texas to the east of Houston. Investigations into the tragic events...
In terms of the inherent potential for on-the-job injuries, the construction industry carries infinite risks. Balancing on scaffolding, working with power tools and operating heavy equipment can quickly create catastrophic accident injuries that often turn fatal. The...
When you clock in for your shift, you probably focus on efficiency in providing quality work for your employer. However, while dedication is important to maintaining your position, employment agreements work both ways. Employers also have an obligation to their...
No, a vessel owner or employer cannot unilaterally terminate maintenance and cure benefits without serious justification. Maintenance and cure requires that vessel owners and employers provide sick and injured seaman their basic living expenses and reasonable and...
On February 12, 2021, a Harris County resident (the “man”) filed a lawsuit in the Harris County District Court against a Houston metal fabrication company made up of defendants BWFS Industries LLC, BWFS Industries RE ETH LLC, BWFS Industries RE H 59 LLC and Eduardo...
The payment of maintenance and cure benefits for injured seaman are supposed to be “virtually automatic.” These claims are protections afforded to mariners in recognition of the perils of seafaring life. Maintenance benefits provide for a seaman’s basic living...
Last Thursday in Gainesville, Georgia a nitrogen line burst at a meat processing plant. The nitrogen leak caused the death of at least six workers and respiratory injuries to many others at the plant. Currently, at least three workers remain in critical condition out...
Nearly one year after a catastrophic explosion at Watson Grinding & Manufacturing Co. rocked northwest Houston, United States Bankruptcy Judge Marvin Isgur entered an ordered remanding 126 explosion-related cases to state court. Last Summer, experts conducted a...
Oil & Gas Worker Fatality Rate Seven Times Higher than Other Industries According to the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention (“CDC”), the fatality rate for United States oil and gas extraction workers, both onshore and offshore, has in recent...
This week marks the one-year anniversary of the chemical explosion at the Watson Grinding & Manufacturing Plant that left three dead and damaged hundreds of homes in nearby neighborhoods. The milestone comes as many residents continue efforts to process insurance...
Since at least 1823, our courts have recognized that the perils of seafaring life necessitate unique protections for mariners. Consequently, under general maritime law and the Jones Act, any injured seaman is entitled to maintenance, cure, and unearned wages for...
Most jobs involve an inherent risk of injury or even death. Every day people, whether they are driving a car or handling heavy machinery, put their lives at risk to perform their jobs. But there are certainly some jobs that are more dangerous than others. These jobs...
The families of two men killed in a staircase collapse at the future Marathon Oil headquarters have sued the petroleum company and several subcontractors involved in the construction, claiming that negligence in training, safety protocols, and oversight led to the...
Building collapses are a type of devasting and often preventable construction accident that cause injuries to large numbers of workers each year. As hubs of ongoing activity by multiple parties, construction sites rely on a careful balancing act between building...
Some workers report for duty aware of the risk to their personal safety. Oil rigs present the possibility of an explosion, for example, and falls are common to construction sites. However, despite the health and safety regulations employers put in place to protect...
Sometimes injuries on vessels go unreported. In the time it takes some offshore injuries to manifest, the injured offshore worker may be long off the rig, boat, or barge before he realizes he was injured on the job and did not report it to anyone. Just because an...
A crane collapsed Wednesday morning in Austin, Texas. The construction crane collapsed causing injury to twenty-two people according to news reports. Of the twenty-two injured workers, sixteen people were taken to St. David's Hospital in Austin. Currently, it is...
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