SUMMARY JUDGMENT GRANTED FOR CRUISE LINE WHERE DEATH OF PASSENGER ALLEGEDLY CAUSED BY MALPRACTICE OF INDEPENDENTLY CONTRACTED DOCTOR AND NURSE
SANDRA JACKSON, individually and on behalf of her deceased husband, RONNIE LEE JACKSON, and on behalf of her minor children, ASHLEE JACKSON, ARIC JACKSON, and AUSTIN JACKSON, Plaintiffs, vs. CARNIVAL CRUISELINES, INC., CRAIG LUNN, and JOYCE BOYD-LITTLE, Defendant.
CASE NO. 99-1813-CIV-GOLD/SIMONTON
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
2002 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9192
May 20, 2002, Decided
May 21, 2002, Filed
DISPOSITION: Defendant Carnival's motion for summary judgment GRANTED.
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiffs, cruise ship passenger who also sued on behalf of her minor children and deceased husband, sued defendants, cruise line, the ship's doctor, and a ship's nurse, for the death of her husband shortly after the family's disembarkation from cruise ship. The decedent had been ill while on board the ship. The cruise line moved for summary judgment.
OVERVIEW: The cruise line hired the doctor and the nurse as independent contractors. The passenger claimed the cruise line negligently hired and trained its medical staff. The court found the cruise line presented sufficient evidence, in the form of employment records and credentials, to support its position that it exercised reasonable care in hiring, training, and retaining the individual defendants. The passenger failed to submit any evidence to refute the cruise line's evidence. The passenger's contention that the employment files had documents missing was without merit because the missing documents were not relevant to the allegations. The court rejected the passenger's contention that the cruise line impliedly guaranteed its passengers safe passage. The ticket contract had no language that would have created such an obligation. In fact, the contract specifically disavowed responsibility for the actions of the medical staff provided aboard the cruise ship. Given this language, the court also rejected the passenger's claim that the cruise line failed to warn her that it was immune from its medical staff's negligent acts or that it was not obligated to provide medical care.
OUTCOME: The district court granted the motion for summary judgment on behalf of the cruise line.
