Published by The Pellegrin Firm January 25, 2020

In a recent decision out of Baton Rouge, a Louisiana federal judge ruled against an employer seeking a ruling that an injured worker was not a seaman at the time he became injured. The case is Dillion Gage v. Canal Barge Co., Inc. et. al. Docket No. 18-CV-990-JWD-RLB in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana and the ruling is dated January 3, 2019.  Seaman status is important in maritime injury cases because it gives an injured worker the ability to seek damages for pain and suffering from his employer. In order to be considered a seaman, a worker must have a substantial connection to a vessel or a fleet of vessels in navigation.

In the present instance, it was uncontroverted that the plaintiff was injured on land, while lifting a Yamaha outboard motor. However, a seaman does not have to be injured on a vessel in order to recover damages as a seaman. The bulk of the judge’s decision centers on a plaintiff’s recent change in duties from more maritime-based duties to more land-based duties and whether that change was temporary or permanent. Ultimately, the court found that there were enough disputed issues of material fact to preclude summary judgment. There was conflicting evidence on how much time the injured worker spent on land versus on the water, as well as how likely it was that the injured worker would eventually return to more duties on the water.