Undefeated Offshore Wrongful Death Lawyers
Few jobs are as dangerous as those in the maritime and offshore industries.
The men and women working aboard drilling platforms, supply vessels, tankers, transports, and commercial fishing boats can spend weeks—and even months— away from their families in extremely difficult conditions on unpredictable seas. When something goes wrong, the consequences are often immediate and irreversible. For those left behind, grief is only worsened by financial uncertainty and the fear that a wrongful death at sea might have been prevented had the maritime company taken the necessary steps to ensure the health and safety of its workforce.
Unlike workplace accidents on land, maritime and offshore fatalities aren’t subject to state workers’ comp and wrongful death laws. Instead, they’re governed by a complex framework of federal statutes—the Jones Act, the Death on the High Seas Act, the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act—explicitly enacted for the benefit of maritime and offshore workers and their families.
Our Undefeated Maritime Lawyers have helped countless clients rebuild their lives following some of the worst offshore accidents and explosions in recent history. Leveraging our vast knowledge of maritime law, our formidable resources, and an unrelenting commitment to recover the maximum compensation possible, we don’t just win — we set records.
The Jones Act
Known officially as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, the Jones Act applies specifically to seamen—workers who spend a substantial portion of their employment serving a vessel in navigation, such as:
- Deckhands and crew members on supply boats, tugboats, dredges, and tankers.
- Engineers and operators running machinery aboard vessels.
- Drillers, roustabouts, and crane operators on rigs or drillships that qualify as vessels.
- Specialized technicians, including welders or ROV operators, who spend significant time assigned to a vessel.
Courts often use a 30 percent threshold to determine seaman status. However, our experience has shown that maritime employers fight hard against this classification in an attempt to limit their liability following an offshore accident or explosion. That’s because, once a deceased worker is declared a Jones Act seaman, surviving family members have the right to pursue compensation through:
- Negligence claims: When unsafe practices, inadequate training, faulty equipment, or poor safety enforcement caused or contributed to a fatality.
- Unseaworthiness claims: A ship may be deemed “unseaworthy” if it lacked proper equipment, was poorly maintained, or had an underqualified crew.
- Wrongful Death Claims: If a loved one was killed because of their employer’s negligence or the unseaworthiness of the vessel.
- Survival claims for the conscious pain and suffering of the decedent before death caused by a negligent act.
These claims must be filed within 3 years of a worker’s death. Surviving spouses, children, and dependent parents or siblings are entitled to any resulting damages, including compensation for:
- Loss of financial Support and Contribution: The financial contributions that the seaman would have made to the family over the course of their normal work life expectancy.
- Loss of Services: The monetary value of services the decedent would have provided around the home.
- Nurture to Dependent Children: The value of care, guidance and training to the seaman’s children.
- Pre-Death Medical Expenses: Out-of-pocket costs related to hospital stays and other medical care the decedent received prior to their death.
- Funeral Expenses: Compensation for funeral costs paid by beneficiaries.
- Pre-Death Pain and Suffering: Monitory value of conscious pain and suffering, including psychological and emotional trauma, suffered before death.
The Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA)
Also passed in 1920, the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) applies to injuries and deaths that occur more than three nautical miles from U.S. Shores, as well as aircraft accidents that occur over international waters at least 12 nautical miles offshore.
Offshore and maritime workers covered by DOHSA include
- Offshore oil and gas workers killed on drilling platforms, drillships, or vessels beyond the three-mile limit.
- Mariners and seamen on commercial ships, tankers, and cargo vessels operating on the high seas.
- Offshore transport passengers, including contractors and crew ferried by helicopter to rigs and platforms, as well as passengers aboard cruise ships.
- Aviation passengers and crew killed in crashes occurring beyond U.S. territorial waters (12 nautical miles for aviation)..
DOHSA claims must be filed within 3 years of a death, and the law only allows for recovery for pecuniary, or financial, losses, including:
- Loss of financial support the deceased would have provided to dependents.
- Loss of household services performed by the deceased, such as childcare or home maintenance.
- Funeral expenses, if incurred by the surviving beneficiaries.
DOHSA compensation is also limited to spouses, children, and other dependents, with courts calculating the amount based on each person’s financial loss. However, to avoid paying survivors the maximum compensation possible, maritime companies and their insurers will almost always try to minimize the support provided by the deceased during their lifetime.
The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA)
Enacted in 1927, the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) was intended to fill the gap for maritime employees who work on or near the water but aren’t permanently assigned to a vessel. The LHWCA functions more like a workers’ compensation system than a negligence statute, which means families receive structured benefits regardless of fault—but without the broader damages available under the Jones Act.
The LHWCA applies to:
- Longshoremen and stevedores who load and unload cargo from ships.
- Shipbuilders and repair workers at docks and shipyards.
- Harbor construction workers building or repairing piers, wharves, and terminals.
- Crane operators and equipment handlers working on navigable waters or adjoining areas.
Those eligible for benefits under the LHWCA include the surviving spouse and children of a covered worker. Parents, grandchildren, siblings, or individuals who had a parental role in the deceased’s life may also qualify, but their eligibility is assessed on a case-by-case basis and requires proof of dependency on the deceased worker.
LHWCA death benefits are calculated as a portion of the worker’s Average Weekly Wage (AWW), which varies depending on the survivor’s relationship to the deceased. Benefits for spouses continue until death or remarriage, at which point they are entitled to a 2-year lump sum. Children can collect until adulthood, although there are exceptions for students and children with disabilities. Families can also recover funeral expenses up to a statutory maximum of $3000 and medical costs related to their loved one’s final injury or illness.
Like workers’ comp, survivors are barred from suing employers. However, depending on the circumstances of their loved one’s death, they may have grounds to pursue wrongful death lawsuits against any third parties whose negligence contributed to their loss.
Offshore and maritime employers must be notified of a death within 30 days, and families generally must file a formal claim within one year of the death.
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCLSA)
The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act was passed to cover the growing number of oil and gas workers stationed miles offshore on platforms and other structures fixed to the seabed. These installations are not considered vessels, so the workers as seamen under the Jones Act. Instead, OCLSA extends the benefits of the LHWCA to deaths and injuries that occur on the outer continental shelf.
OCLSA specifically applies to:
- Drilling and production crews on fixed offshore oil and gas platforms.
- Maintenance and service personnel stationed on permanent structures miles from shore.
- Divers and subsea workers performing tasks tied to the exploration or development of natural resources.
- Contractors and subcontractors supporting operations on offshore platforms or seabed structures.
The law provides the same structured benefits available under the LHWCA, and, like that statute, bars families from suing their loved one’s employer. However, if a vessel or outside contractor contributed to the accident—such as a supply boat delivering equipment—families may have grounds to file a wrongful death lawsuit.
Deadlines under OCLSA mirror those of the LHWCA: employers must generally be notified within 30 days, and a formal claim must be filed within one year.
After a Maritime or Offshore Death: A Checklist for Families
When workers die offshore, maritime companies and their insurers immediately start building their defense. Investigators are sent to the scene, logs are locked away or even destroyed, and crew members are interviewed before the family even knows what happened. It’s an uneven playing field from the start, and every move these companies make is designed to limit their responsibility and avoid paying survivors all that they are owed. If you and your family are going to obtain the maximum compensation available by law, it’s critical that you move just as quickly to protect your rights:.
- Do not sign anything or accept a quick settlement: Maritime employers and their insurers often push families to accept quick settlements. But in our experience, these are almost always low-ball offers that require families to surrender any rights to additional damages. Don’t accept or sign anything until you’ve had a chance to consult with a lawyer.
- Demand preservation of evidence: Vessel logs, maintenance records, black box or voyage data, safety reports, and crew statements will quickly disappear unless the appropriate steps are taken to ensure their preservation.
- Collect financial records: Gather pay stubs, tax returns, and benefit information that show the support your loved one provided. The question of support is often contentious in these cases, and this documentation will prevent the company from minimizing your loved one’s contributions.
- Keep track of all communications and expenses. Save emails, letters, or notes from company representatives or insurers—they can be important later. You should also save funeral bills and any bills related to medical care your loved one received from the time they were injured until their death.
- Reach out to our maritime lawyers. Our offshore injury attorneys are prepared to step in immediately to ensure all deadlines are met and all vital evidence is preserved. We know how to ensure evidence is preserved, and we’ll work with leading maritime experts to determine how your loved one was injured and how their death could have been prevented.
All maritime laws impose strict filing deadlines and statutes of limitations on survivors. However, the longer you wait to contact an attorney, the more likely it is that evidence needed to prove your case will get lost or disappear entirely, even if your case is filed on time. Wh
Did You Lose a Loved One in an Offshore Accident? Call Our Undefeated Maritime Lawyers at 1-888-603-3636 or by Clicking Here
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Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers – Houston
2700 Post Oak Blvd #1000, Houston, TX 77056
(888) 603-3636
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Zehl & Associates Injury & Accident Lawyers – Midland
306 W Wall St Suite 701, Midland, TX 79701
(432) 220-0000
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