Cruise Ship Law

GEORGE MICHAEL ORR VERSUS OTTO CANDIES, INC., ET AL.

04-60
COURT OF APPEAL OF LOUISIANA, THIRD CIRCUIT
04-60 (La.App. 3 Cir, 06/09/04); 2004 La. App. LEXIS 1477
June 9, 2004, Decided

PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiff merchant marine filed suit for damages after he sustained injury on defendant company's property. The Sixteenth Judicial District Court, Parish of Iberia, Louisiana, found in favor of the company and ruled that any fault for the fall was to be apportioned between the marine and his employer.

OVERVIEW: The merchant marine's ship docked at an unimproved portion of the landowner's property to take on water. When the captain approached the docking area, the landowner gave them permission to dock but advised them of the washouts, or holes in the landscape, and advised them to be careful. The merchant marine was injured when he left his employer's ship to disconnect a water hose and stepped into a "washout" on the landowner's property and sustained serious injuries. The trial court held that the landowner had fulfilled any duty that it had by informing the captain of the ship of the "washout" conditions where they docked. The appellate court affirmed. The appellate court held that given that this was an area where the landowner did not regularly conduct business, the landowner advised the ship's captain to be careful of the washout areas, and it was dark enough at the time that the merchant marine was injured that he could not see his steps, the landowner acted reasonably and fulfilled his duty.

OUTCOME: The judgment of the trial court was affirmed.