EVIDENCE THAT A DECEDENT SPENT 32 PERCENT OF HIS TIME PERFORMING MARINE WORK FOR HIS EMPLOYER IN CONJUNCTION WITH HIS JOB DESCRIPTION, THE SKILLS HE WAS EXPECTED TO PERFORM, AND THE ACTUAL TASK PERFORMED AT THE TIME OF HIS DEATH ESTABLISHED THAT THE DECED
ROY MUDRICK; CAROL MUDRICK, Plaintiffs-Appellants v. CROSS EQUIPMENT LTD, Defendant-Appellee
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
2007 U.S. App. LEXIS 23345
October 4, 2007, Filed
PROCEDURAL POSTURE: Plaintiffs appealed an order of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Galveston, which granted summary judgment in favor of defendant, a manufacturer of a winch, and determined that plaintiffs' decedent was a seaman under the Jones Act, 46 U.S.C.S. § 30104, at the time of his death. Thus, the district court found that plaintiffs were barred from recovering non-pecuniary damages from the manufacturer.
OVERVIEW: The decedent, while working as an oil spill technician, was struck in the head by a steel anchor cable that came off of the winch that he was using to wind the cable and raise the anchor. Plaintiffs challenged the determination that the decedent had a connection substantial in terms of both duration and nature. On appeal, the court affirmed the grant of summary judgment. Plaintiffs failed to present any evidence to contradict the manufacturer's proof that the decedent spent 32 percent of his time performing marine work aboard his employer's vessels in navigation. That evidence in conjunction with the decedent's job description, the skills he was expected to perform in the course of his employment, and the actual task that he was performing when he was killed led to only one conclusion, that the decedent was a Jones Act seaman under § 30104.
OUTCOME: The court affirmed the grant of summary judgment.
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