On Monday, May 12, 2008, the United States Coast Guard called off the search for a passenger of a cruise ship who fell overboard. The passenger was a woman who had been on the Norwegian Dawn cruise ship. The Coast Guard called off the search because of weather conditions.

The details at this point are lacking in regard to: how the passenger went overboard, whether the cruise line’s lack of security onboard contributed to the incident in the first place, whether the cruise line reacted quickly enough (under international maritime law, the cruise line is obligated to conduct an immediate search), whether the cruise line reacted appropriately in for example calling in the Coast Guard quickly enough and in conducting the search long enough.

This is the last in a series of events for Norwegian Cruise Lines. Just this month, this same cruise line was found criminally negligent in the maintenance of the SS Norway which led to a boiler room blow up over 5 years ago. The explosion on that Norwegain Cruise Ship caused the death and horrific injuries to several crew members. In that case, the cruise line avoided any severe liability to the families of the seaman by invoking a little used and little known clause in the seaman’s contract which said that the seaman were required to arbitrate in their home country, in that case the Philipines. In other words, the United States Congress has enacted the Jones Act for seaman but these seaman cannot utilize it because the cruise lines put a clause in their contract to keep the cases out of U.S. courts.

In the case of the SS Norway, the boilers had cracks caused by age and by infiltrates in the water used in the boilers. The cruise line said that they should not be blamed for the shoddy maitenance because their classificatoin society, a private company hired by the cruise lines to perform periodic inspections, had inspected and passed the engine room. The report upon which the indictment relied said that the class society inspection did not matter. After all, these class societies are paid by the shipowners to perform these inspections. In any event, it is the cruise line which is ultimately responsible for maitenance.

This is the same cruise line and the same cruise ship which was involved in the so called “rogue wave” incident off of the coast of North Carolina 3 years ago. In that case, the ship diverted early to go back to New York so they could film a TV show on the ship. In doing so, the captain went headlong into a storm with gigantic waves. The captain admitted in deposition that there was no “rogue wave” although at trial he recanted this. Numerous people suffered injuries on that cruise.

I keep track of the cruise lines; I know their history; I used to represent the cruise lines for over 15 years; I now represent only the passengers who have suffered severe injuries and the families of passengers who had died as a result of the negligence or medical malpractice of the cruise line.

See our website for information on what to do in the event of an injury in a cruise ship: www.hickeylawfirm.com. See also www.cruiseshipassault.com. The bottom line is get medical care immediately. Take photos, and document and report everything. This includes reporting it to the cruise line, taking photos, and going to your doctor and whatever specialist he/she sends you to.

Also, CALL HICKEY LAW FIRM, P.A., TOLL FREE AT: 1.800.215.7117. Our consultations are always free. We work on a contingency basis. Personal injury, wrongful death, sexual assaults, and medical malpractice. This all happens on cruise ships and we have handled these types of claims for 27 years.

Hickey Law Firm, P.A. is headed up by John H. (Jack) Hickey. Hickey was born and raised in the cruise line capital of the world, Miami, Florida. For the first 17 years of his career, Hickey represented the cruise lines and insurance companies. Now he represents you, the seriously injured, the family of a loved one who has died as a result of someone else’s negligence, the victim of a sexual assault, or the victim of medical malpractice.
Hickey is Board Certified as a Civil Trial Lawyer by The Florida Bar and by the National Board of Trial Advocacy. He is a Past President of the Dade County Bar Association and is on the Board of Governors of The Florida Bar. Hickey has been named by his peers as a “SUPERLAWYER” in the Superlawyer.com publication (the top 5% of all lawyers); as a “Top Lawyer in South Florida” in the areas of personal injury and maritime in the South Florida Legal Guide (2004 to present); and as a “Legal Elite” member in Florida Trend Magazine (2006) (top 1.7% of all lawyers). He is listed in Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who in American Law, and Who’s Who in Emerging Leaders in America. Hickey is rated A/V by Martindale Hubbell, the international directory of lawyers, a rating achieved by only 5% of all attorneys. CONTACT US AND SEE OUR RESULTS AT: www.hickeylawfirm.com and CALL US TOLL FREE AT 1.800.215.7117.
We also represent passengers who have been sexually assaulted on cruise ships. John H. (Jack) Hickey Hickey Law Firm, P.A. www.hickeylawfirm.com. CALL US TODAY FOR A FREE CONSULTATION: 1.800.215.7117.