Summary Judgment Granted Against Seaman Who Slipped On Wet Deck In Favor Of Charterer And The Employer With Respect To Jones Act. Denied As To Maintenance And Cure
ANTHONY ALFRED VERSUS HORNBECK OFFSHORE SERVICES, ET AL.
CIVIL ACTION NO. 04-2243 SECTION "L" (5)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OFLOUISIANA
2005 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3325
February 22, 2005, Decided
February 22, 2005, Filed; February 24, 2005, Entered
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiff seaman filed suit against defendants, his employer, a vessel owner, and a charterer, alleging claims against the owner and charterer for negligence and unseaworthiness. The seaman also alleged claims against his employer for negligence and unseaworthiness under the Jones Act and for maintenance and cure. The charterer and the employer filed motions for summary judgment.
OVERVIEW: The seaman, who was working as a cook aboard a vessel, claimed that he was injured when he slipped on a wet floor while walking down a hallway from his bedroom to the bathroom. The seaman further contended that he did not know that the floor had just been mopped and was wet. The charterer and the employer sought summary judgment on the seaman's negligence claim. The court held that the charterer was entitled to summary judgment because the seaman's injuries did not occur within the traditional spheres of activity over which a time charterer might exercise control, the charterer had no employees aboard the vessel, and the charterer had no responsibility for controlling tasks like mopping. Thus, the charterer did not owe the seaman a "hybrid duty" to instruct the captain to maintain a safe work place and keep the floors from being slippery and dangerous. The court further held that the employer was entitled to summary judgment on the issue of liability under the Jones Act because the evidence established that the employer had no way of knowing that the floor was wet at the time of the accident. Thus, the employer did not have notice and an opportunity to correct the unsafe condition.
OUTCOME: The court granted the charterer's motion for summary judgment, granted the employer's motion for summary judgment with respect to the employer's liability under the Jones Act, and denied the employer's motion for summary judgment with respect to the seaman's claim for maintenance and cure.
