Published by The Pellegrin Firm December 29, 2019

In a recent decision dated November 22, 2019, a federal judge in the Southern District of Florida denied summary judgment for an injured cruise ship passenger seeking a ruling declaring Carnival Cruises negligent in her case. More specifically, the plaintiff sought a ruling from the court that Carnival had actual or constructive knowledge of a dangerous condition that caused her injury. The the court found there were disputed issues of material fact on the issue of notice that needed to be decided at trial.

Most lawsuits filed against cruise lines are transferred to southern Florida, even when the accident happened at sea or near another port, as when passengers buy their tickets, they agree to litigate any cases against the cruise company in that venue. While most passengers don’t know they are agreeing to this when they purchase tickets, courts have almost uniformly held the forum selection clauses to be enforceable.

In the present instance, the woman had been drinking and due to astigmatism, could not judge distances well in the area she fell. She claimed the deck where she fell was wet and unsafe and that Carnival was aware of an issue there because of previous incidents. The court found that maritime law governs cruise line injury cases filed in United States courts, and that under maritime law, owners of vessels in navigable waters owe passengers a duty of reasonable care under the circumstances.

Carnival pointed to the statements of several crewmembers who investigated the area after the accident. They stated that the area did not seem wet or dangerous. The plaintiff testified that there was a man with a mop nearby and caution cones nearby, which means Carnival must have had notice. Plaintiff objected to the hearsay nature of crew statements submitted in Carnival’s expert report. The court relied on Supreme Court precedent in ruling that hearsay statements may be taken into account in ruling on a motion for summary judgment if there is a possibility those statements may be introduced in admissible form at trial. Ultimately, the court found there were too many facts both ways to make a definitive ruling at the summary judgment stage. The case is Williford v. Carnival Corporation, Docket No. 17-21992 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.