In Chenevert v. Travelers Indemnity Co., No. 13-60119 (5th Cir. March 7, 2014), the Fifth Circuit formally recognized that an insurer providing and making voluntary payments to an injured employee under the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act 33 U.S.C.A. § 901 et seq (“LHWCA”), specifically 905(b), is entitled to a subrogation lien against the
Jones Act
Work Related Stress: It Comes With The Job for a Jones Act Seaman
By Daniel Stanton on
Posted in Admiralty and Maritime
In a recent decision, the Eleventh Circuit in Skye v. Maersk Line Limited, Corp., 751 F.3d 1262 (11th Cir. 2014), reversed a district court ruling awarding damages to a Jones Act seaman for injuries stemming from “excessive work hours and an erratic sleep schedule.” The Court’s decision in Skye reaffirms a now decades old…
Calming the Storm Tossed Waters: The Availability of Punitive Damages to the Jones Act Seaman Post McBride
By Kean Miller on
Posted in Admiralty and Maritime
A. Introduction to Punitive Damages
Pecuniary damages are awards designed to restore “material loss which is susceptible of pecuniary valuation.” Michigan Central Railroad. Co. v. Vreeland, 227 U.S. 59, 71, 33 S.Ct. 192, 57, L.Ed. 417 (1913). Punitive or exemplary damages do not compensate for a loss; instead, they are imposed to punish the…