The Jones Act has protected the rights of maritime workers for many decades, but working with this Act (which is actually a set of laws) requires an in-depth level of knowledge and experience on the part of an attorney or law firm. Gacovino, Lake & Associates is a Jones Act plaintiffs' law firm; that is, our personal injury attorneys use the protections afforded by the Jones Act to help individuals and families impacted by a maritime injury or fatality.

Helping Maritime Workers

Each year, hundreds of maritime workers such as sailors, seamen, divers, offshore workers and others are hurt or killed on the job, working on board vessels such as:

• Ships, including cruise ships
• Crewboats
• Tugs and towboats
• Commercial maritime ships
• Platforms
• Rigs, jack-up rigs

The Jones Act is for the Protection of the Injured

The variety of injuries and accidents that happen to maritime employees are quite extensive, and the Jones Act exists to protect the rights of the injured in scenarios such as:

• Capsizing of a vessel
• Collision with another vessel
• Fires
• Explosions
• Being thrown about by rough seas
• Slips and falls on board a vessel
• Food poisoning
• Being struck by a falling object
• Injuries during construction

Jones Act Benefits

The Jones Act and similar laws provide injured maritime workers with the following benefits:

• Maintenance: weekly income to replace the injured worker's wages
• Cure: an old term that simply means medical care, such as surgery, medication, hospitalization, and long-term care
• Personal Injury damages: financial compensation for short- and long-term medical expenses, wage loss, lost earning capacity, fringe benefit loss, the costs of physical rehabilitation, retraining costs, occupational therapy, pain and suffering, losses due to physical impairment or disability, disfigurement, loss of quality of life, and more

The Necessary Knowledge and Experience

Not every law firm is familiar with Jones Act law, let alone experienced in this complex legal field. At Gacovino, Lake & Associates, our personal injury attorneys have the necessary skills and experience to help injured maritime workers and their families. The criteria that a Jones Act plaintiff must meet, for example, are a preliminary matter of discussion for a potential plaintiff and our attorneys—to determine whether:

• The injured individual is a maritime worker within the definition of the Jones Act
• The vessel or site or injury is a "Jones Act vessel"
• The individual's employer is a "Jones Act employer"
• The injury or fatality was caused at least in part by negligence on the part of the employer or a coworker

  To discuss the circumstances of your own possible Jones Act case, contact Gacovino, Lake & Associates. All initial consultations are free of charge.

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