Named after its author, Sen. Wesley Jones of Washington state, and also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, this law protects injured maritime workers, seamen, sailors or offshore platform workers in the event of injury. It holds a captain, crew or owner of a vessel or rig responsible for employees’ injuries, notably where unseaworthiness of the vessel or rig, or negligence of the captain, crew or owner, caused the accident.

Thanks to this wise and far-reaching maritime law, injured maritime workers -- or survivors of those who are killed -- have recourse. They can assert a Jones Act claim via a Jones Act lawsuit to recover their financial losses. To begin, they only have to contact a Texas Jones Act lawyer with veteran law firm Jim S. Adler & Associates, in which thousands of injured Texans have put their trust for more than three decades.

A Jones Act injury could erupt due to faulty equipment on a ship, barge, tugboat, dredge or other vessel, as well as an offshore oil rig or platform. Such an injury may occur when a vessel’s safety procedures are inadequate. It can also come up if a working environment in general is unsafe. In these situations, Jones Act protections should apply.

Ships or rigs on which Jones Act injuries can occur include ferries, trawlers, tug boats, water taxis, supply boats, shrimp boats, barges, riverboats, semi-submersible vessels, tankers, drill ships, oil rigs and jack-up rigs. Workers hurt or killed during transport to or from an offshore oil platform or vessel, or even injured at the time a ship is at dock, are also safeguarded via the Jones Act.

These safeguards and protections are an injured maritime employee’s legal right. But to be legally claimed, an experienced Jones Act lawyer is needed. She or he or must grasp the complicated language of the extensive act, which also is known as Jones Act 46 U.S.C. The act was thoroughly revised and re-codified in 2006, so ongoing knowledge is essential.

A knowledgeable Texas Jones Act attorney acting on behalf of an injured maritime worker also can help protect him or her against opposing interests. For instance, an employer may propose a rapid financial settlement that’s far below what the injured employee is due. A Jones Act attorney could help protect that person from the pitfall of accepting a quick but small settlement and thus losing the right to act further.

This often has been the case with Jones Act injuries, when wealthy owners or employers want to avoid paying adequate compensation to injured employees or to the survivors of employees who died on the job. But with support from a Houston Jones Act lawyer and the Jones Act itself, justice can be found.

Jones Act Protects Injured Maritime Workers, But Legal Assistance Still Vital