If you were injured on a rig, supply boat, crew boat, or any other vessel in the Gulf of Mexico, you have the right to pursue compensation under the Jones Act or general maritime law. What that process looks like, and how long it takes, depends on the facts of your case, the severity of your injuries, and how aggressively the employer’s insurance company fights your claim.
One thing is true in nearly every case: the employer and their insurer begin building their defense the moment the accident occurs. Understanding the litigation process before you are in the middle of it is one of the most important things you can do to protect your rights.
A maritime injury lawsuit moves through five main stages: medical treatment and evidence gathering, filing, discovery, settlement negotiations, and — if no agreement is reached — trial. Most Jones Act cases settle before trial, but understanding every stage protects you from making decisions that hurt your claim.
Initial Steps After a Maritime Injury
The steps you take immediately following a maritime accident will have a big impact on any subsequent maritime injury lawsuit. Here are a few things you need to do:
- Treatment: The first thing you need to do is seek medical attention. Medical records are crucial evidence in a maritime injury lawsuit. If you fail to seek medical attention for your injuries, you may have difficulty proving you were even injured in the first place.
- Notification: Next, inform a supervisor of your injury accident. Like your medical records, their report will serve as an important piece of evidence.
- Documentation: If possible, document the accident scene and get the names of any witnesses. Photos and eyewitness testimony can help boost your case.
- Legal Help: Finally, speak with an experienced maritime injury accident lawyer.
What the Company Is Doing While You Recover
In the hours and days after a serious maritime accident, the employer, the vessel owner, and their insurers are not standing still. They are:
- Sending investigators to document the scene before evidence is lost or repaired.
- Collecting statements from witnesses, often before you have spoken with an attorney.
- Reviewing vessel logs, safety records, and maintenance files.
- In some cases, sending representatives to the hospital to take your statement while you are still in pain or on medication.
You have the right to decline to give a recorded statement to your employer, the vessel owner, or their insurer before speaking with a maritime attorney. Statements made in the immediate aftermath of an accident, when you may not fully understand your injuries or the cause of the accident, are routinely used to minimize your claim later.
Contact an LKSA attorney as soon as you are able. We can help preserve evidence, prevent premature statements, and ensure the investigation is conducted on fair terms.
Filing Your Complaint or Petition
The maritime accident litigation process begins by filing a complaint or a petition. A complaint or a petition is a formal legal document that:
- Outlines the facts of your case
- Names the parties involved
- Specifies the legal grounds on which the lawsuit is based
- Details about your accident
- Injuries you sustained
- Damages being sought
The complaint is a crucial part of the maritime accident litigation process and serves as the foundation for your case.
A significant part of the lawsuit process involves proving the extent of your injuries and calculating the corresponding financial damages. Learn more about how damages are calculated here.
Maintenance and Cure: Your Income During the Lawsuit
While your lawsuit is pending, which can take months or years, your employer owes you maintenance and cure. These are separate from your lawsuit damages and are owed regardless of fault:
Maintenance: a daily living allowance covering rent, utilities, and basic expenses while you are unable to work due to your injuries.
Cure: the cost of all necessary medical treatment until you reach maximum medical improvement (MMI).
Maintenance and cure continue during the lawsuit. They do not end when you file and your employer cannot legally cut them off simply because litigation has begun. If your employer stops or reduces maintenance and cure payments, contact your attorney immediately. Employers who willfully and wantonly refuse to pay can face punitive damages on top of the unpaid amounts.
Maintenance and cure end when your treating physician declares you have reached MMI — meaning further treatment will not improve your condition. The timing of MMI is often disputed, and your employer’s doctors may declare MMI prematurely. Your attorney can challenge a premature MMI determination.
The Discovery Phase
After the complaint is filed, the case enters the discovery phase. This is when both parties gather evidence to support their claims.
Depositions
Depositions are one of the most critical parts of the discovery phase. During a deposition, the parties involved in the accident and witnesses are questioned under oath. You’ll be asked about the accident, your injuries, and other relevant details — your testimony will play a key role in building your case.
If a witness refuses to testify, it may be necessary to issue a subpoena to compel them to testify.
Interrogatories
The discovery phase may also involve interrogatories (written questions that must be answered) and requests for documents. Documents can include employment records, medical reports, or accident logs. Both sides exchange this information to build their respective cases.
The Independent Medical Exam (IME) — What Offshore Workers Need to Know
The defense will almost certainly request that you undergo an “independent medical exam”, but it is not independent. The defense pays the doctor, and that doctor’s job is to produce a report that minimizes your injuries and supports a return-to-work clearance. This is one of the most important moments in your lawsuit.
Before your IME:
- Tell your maritime attorney the date immediately. They will prepare you.
- Review your prior medical records so you can describe your symptoms consistently and accurately.
- Be honest and thorough. Describe your worst day, not your best. Many workers try to appear strong and underreport pain, which the defense then uses to argue the injury is minor.
At your IME:
- Answer every question honestly but concisely. Do not volunteer information beyond what is asked.
- The doctor may be recording or taking detailed notes. Everything you say and do will be in the report.
- If the doctor’s exam seems superficial or rushed, note that your attorney may retain an expert to challenge the IME findings.
After your IME:
- Call your attorney immediately and describe what happened.
- You may be entitled to have your own treating physician respond to the IME findings.
Settlement: When to Accept and When to Wait
Most maritime injury lawsuits settle before trial, but when and how you settle matters enormously. One of the most common mistakes offshore workers make is accepting a settlement offer before they have reached maximum medical improvement (MMI). Once you settle and sign a release, you generally cannot go back for more money if your condition worsens.
The right time to evaluate a settlement offer:
- After you have reached MMI so your future medical needs and lost earning capacity can be accurately calculated.
- After your attorney has retained medical experts to project long-term treatment costs.
- After you understand all three potential claims — Jones Act negligence, unseaworthiness, and maintenance and cure — and what each is worth.
Insurance adjusters may pressure you to settle quickly, especially in the early weeks after an accident when you are in pain, out of work, and worried about bills. If you have not yet hired an attorney, that pressure is a strong signal to do so before you sign anything.
Mediation & Arbitration
Mediation and arbitration are two common alternatives to trial. They are not equal, and you should understand the difference before agreeing to either.
Mediation is a voluntary process where both sides sit down with a neutral third party to negotiate a settlement. Either side can walk away. Most Jones Act cases that settle do so through mediation. It is less formal, less expensive, and faster than trial. A skilled maritime attorney can negotiate effectively in this setting.
Arbitration is more formal and more consequential. An arbitrator hears the case and issues a final, binding decision. This means you generally cannot appeal if the outcome is unfair. Some offshore employment contracts contain arbitration clauses that require disputes to go to arbitration rather than court, which can eliminate your right to a jury trial. If your employment contract contains an arbitration clause, tell your attorney immediately. These clauses can significantly affect your strategy and your recovery.
Going to Trial
If a case can’t be resolved through negotiation, mediation, or arbitration, the next step in the maritime accident litigation process is to go to trial. A maritime injury lawsuit can be decided by either a judge or a jury, depending on the circumstances of the case. During the trial, both sides present evidence, call witnesses and make their arguments.
Your attorney will present your case by introducing evidence demonstrating the extent of your injuries, the negligence of the responsible party, and the damages you are owed. The defense will also have the opportunity to present their side of the story. Depending on the complexity of the case, a trial can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks to arrive at a verdict.
How Long Does a Maritime Injury Lawsuit Take?
Most Jones Act cases settle within 12 to 24 months of filing. Cases that go to trial typically take two to four years from the date of the accident to a verdict. Several factors specific to maritime cases affect the timeline:
- Injury severity: catastrophic injuries like traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, and amputations take longer because future medical costs and lost earning capacity require extensive expert testimony to establish.
- Number of defendants: basket transfer accidents, crane injuries, and platform accidents often involve multiple parties (vessel owner, platform operator, crane contractor, equipment manufacturer). Multi-defendant cases take longer to resolve.
- Evidence availability: maritime evidence — vessel logs, maintenance records, USCG investigation findings, and witness locations — can disappear quickly. Cases where evidence has been lost or disputed take longer.
- Court schedules: the Eastern District of Louisiana, where most Gulf Coast maritime cases are filed, has a busy maritime docket. Cases in that district can move quickly or slowly depending on the judge and current caseload.
The three-year statute of limitations under the Jones Act does not mean you have three years to start moving. Evidence disappears, witnesses ship out to different assignments, and delays benefit the employer. Contact an attorney as soon as possible after an injury.
There Is No Cost to You Unless You Win
LKSA handles maritime injury cases on a contingency fee basis. This means you pay no attorney fees unless we recover compensation for you. There are no upfront costs and no hourly billing. For an offshore worker who is out of work and relying on maintenance and cure payments, this means you can pursue full compensation without worrying about legal fees.
Talk to an LKSA Maritime Attorney
LKSA has represented offshore rig workers, deckhands, longshoremen, and their families throughout the Gulf Coast for over 35 years. Our attorneys have served as court-appointed counsel in two of the most significant maritime disasters in American history: the Deepwater Horizon explosion and the SEACOR Power capsizing. We know what maritime injury litigation looks like from investigation through trial, because we have litigated it at the highest level.
If you were injured on a vessel or offshore structure, do not wait. Maritime evidence disappears quickly — vessel logs get overwritten, witnesses ship out to different assignments, and conditions get repaired. The sooner you contact an attorney, the stronger your case.
