Seaman Status Not Met Where Less Than 30% Of Time On Vessel
SAMUEL SAMUELOV, Appellant, vs. CARNIVAL CRUISE LINES, INC.,Appellee.
CASE NO. 3D03-215
COURT OF APPEAL OF FLORIDA, THIRD DISTRICT
2003 Fla. App. LEXIS 18356; 28 Fla. L. Weekly D 2763
December 3, 2003, Opinion Filed
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiffs, employee and spouse, sought review of the decision of the Thirty-Second Judicial District Court, Parish of Terrebonne (Louisiana), which granted summary judgment in favor of defendant employer in plaintiffs' action pursuant to the Jones Act (Act), 26 U.S.C.S. app. § 688.
OVERVIEW: Plaintiffs appealed the dismissal by summary judgment of their action for Act damages against the employer based on the trial court's conclusion that the employee lacked the requisite seaman status necessary to recover under the federal compensation scheme. The employee had sustained personal injuries while assigned to an oil-drilling job working aboard a vessel. The court agreed and affirmed, stating that plaintiffs failed to produce factual support sufficient to satisfy their burden of proving a substantial connection to an identifiable group of vessels acting together or under one control. Accordingly, the court found no error in the trial court's conclusion that the plaintiffs failed to prove seaman status to support an action for damages under the Act.
OUTCOME: The judgment was affirmed.
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