Cruise Ship Sexual Assault Lawyer for Cruises Departing from Brooklyn Cruise Terminal
Cruise ship sexual assault claims Brooklyn Cruise Terminal (New York City)
The Brooklyn Cruise Terminal (BCT) is a major hub for international cruise travel. The terminal is located in the Red Hook area of Brooklyn, and its prime location and ease of access make it an ideal spot for travelers to embark and disembark on their cruise vacations.
Cruise lines have seen significant increases in passenger volume over the last several years, leading many companies to expand their operations into new terminals and regions. BCT is one such location that has seen an increase in traffic within the past decade, thanks to the efforts of cruise lines like Princess and Cunard. BCT commonly accommodates more than 50 vessels in any given year and may serve as many as 250,000 passengers annually.
Every person who boards a ship at BCT has high hopes for a pleasant and exciting break from reality. Unfortunately, however, not all aspects of reality are so easily left behind. Sexual assault is one of the most common crimes reported on cruise ships around the world. Individuals who experience sexual violence aboard a cruise ship or while visiting a foreign port may subsequently be left asking countless questions about how, where, and when to pursue legal action.
The Florida-based team at Hickey Law Firm represents survivors of cruise ship sexual assaults in civil claims. Whether you’re looking to take action against an individual perpetrator or are considering filing a claim against a negligent cruise line, we may be able to offer you the support you need under maritime law. Contact our team today, and let’s discuss how Hickey Law Firm can help you take advantage of the legal options available in your case.
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Frequently Asked Questions
- Cruise ship sexual assault: what travelers should know
- Options for pursuing accountability for a cruise ship sexual assault
- Can you sue a cruise line for sexual assault?
- Common challenges in cruise ship sexual assault cases
- What compensation is available in a civil sexual assault claim?
- Why would I need to file a claim in Florida if my cruise left from Brooklyn?
- Speak with a cruise ship sexual assault lawyer for Brooklyn Cruise Terminal departures
Cruise ship sexual assault: what travelers should know
According to data from the United States Department of Transportation, 2025 saw an increased number of reports of sexual assaults on cruise ships. The reports analyzed by the DOT included 51 allegations of sexual assault and 80 allegations of rape, specifically. While this may sound like a distinction without a difference, these statistics highlight the varied but pervasive nature of cruise ship sex crimes.
Sexual assault as a concept is somewhat broad, but it generally refers to sexual acts that are perpetrated against a victim without their consent. This can include a wide variety of activities ranging from nonconsensual kissing to forcible rape. It’s hard to say exactly why sexual assault has consistently ranked as one of the most frequently reported crimes on cruise ships.
In part, the trend may be attributable to the insular and isolated nature of cruise ships. Additionally, cruise ships often see large numbers of passengers embarking and disembarking over the course of an itinerary. With so many people coming, going, and spending time together in close quarters, several different risk factors for sexual assault can become more pronounced.
Alcohol can also play a role in cruise ship sexual assault cases, as many cruise lines offer all-inclusive travel packages and ample opportunities for passengers to imbibe. When a person consumes too much alcohol, they may find their judgment impaired or may become so incapacitated that they cannot legally consent to sexual contact. The relative accessibility of alcoholic beverages on cruise ships can further compound the risk of sexual violence.
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Options for pursuing accountability for a cruise ship sexual assault
When someone is sexually assaulted on a cruise ship, they may want to pursue legal action against the person who harmed them (or other responsible entities, as we will discuss in a later section). Most people think of sexual assault as a police matter that may ultimately be handled in criminal court. It’s true that criminal cases can be brought by the government against alleged abusers, but this isn’t always the end of the road for survivors seeking accountability.
Civil sexual assault claims are separate from criminal proceedings, but they can play an important role in helping survivors access the resources they need to address their assault-related losses. While criminal cases focus on penalizing defendants for their actions, civil cases aim to provide victims with actual compensation.
Civil cases are brought by individual survivors rather than by the state, which means both kinds of cases can function independently of one another. In practice, that means you can pursue civil litigation against your abuser even if they were never convicted in a criminal court. While a criminal conviction can help strengthen your civil case, you can technically still file a civil claim without having previously reported your assault to law enforcement.
The civil court system provides survivors with another avenue for holding their assailants accountable while fighting for the resources they need to move forward after experiencing trauma. The burden of proof is also lower in civil cases, so survivors may still be able to build a strong claim without the evidence prosecutors would have needed to establish guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Can you sue a cruise line for sexual assault?
As we alluded to above, there are some cases where a cruise line could be held civilly liable for sexual assault. This is yet another advantage of civil litigation: It doesn’t have to focus exclusively on an individual perpetrator. If the evidence suggests that another party (such as a cruise line) caused or contributed to a sexual assault, that party could be deemed liable in a civil claim.
In order to hold a cruise line liable, an assault survivor would likely need to demonstrate that the company owed them a legal duty of care and caused them harm by breaching that duty by way of their actions or inaction. In practice, this means you’d have to show that the cruise line failed to take reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm or to address your (or others’) complaints of misconduct.
That might look like a cruise line failing to install security cameras in known high-risk areas of a ship. It could also look like a cruise line knowingly hiring an employee with a history of sexual misconduct. If an assault takes place in an improperly supervised area or at the hands of an employee with a history of past complaints, the cruise line could face claims of liability.
The same could be said in the event that a cruise line’s response to an allegation of assault causes additional harm to the victim. We often see this scenario play out in cruise ship cases because of these companies’ reliance on internal security teams. These crews may lack the necessary training to preserve evidence or may fail to get outside law enforcement involved in a timely manner. If these failures compound a victim’s suffering, the victim could pursue a claim against the cruise line for its contributions to their assault and its impact.
Common challenges in cruise ship sexual assault cases
When a sexual assault takes place on land, the reporting and prosecutorial processes tend to be somewhat straightforward. Jurisdiction for these cases usually falls wherever the assault actually took place, and law enforcement and prosecutors get involved accordingly. Cruise ship cases aren’t always this simple, however.
Since cruise ships pass through multiple jurisdictions and may spend time in international waters, trying to identify the proper venue for a claim can prove challenging. Many cruise lines – including those that operate out of BCT – require passengers to agree to ticket contracts that detail how an individual must go about reporting and filing a claim related to an onboard incident. In many cases, passengers are required to bring claims in federal court in Florida, even if the ship departed from a port in New York City.
Additionally, the internal investigative processes used by cruise ship security teams can create hurdles for survivors attempting to build strong civil claims. If evidence is improperly preserved or if a cruise line maintains control over digital evidence like surveillance footage, it may take longer for a survivor to access the materials they need to fight for accountability in civil court.
Experienced cruise ship sexual assault lawyers can send preservation requests on their clients’ behalf to safeguard against evidence being tampered with or overwritten, but the challenges associated with these cases can still have a major impact on the outcome of a claim.
What compensation is available in a civil sexual assault claim?
Depending on the facts of your case and the evidence available to support those facts, you may be able to pursue compensation for various losses related to your assault. Civil sexual assault claims commonly involve a combination of economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages are things like medical bills. These losses are measurable and quantifiable. In many cases, survivors are entitled to compensation for past, present, and future losses. In addition to providing retroactive compensation for expenses like bills and lost work shifts, some claims involve long-term losses like a reduction in lifetime earning potential or long-term care costs.
Non-economic damages, on the other hand, are the kinds of losses that aren’t always visible to the naked eye. Some survivors pursue compensation for the physical pain they experienced as a result of their assault. Others fight for damages related to the emotional toll their assault took on their life. Witness testimony (from friends, family members, employers, etc.) can help illustrate the extent of a survivor’s non-economic damages and add important context to their claim.
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Why would I need to file a claim in Florida if my cruise left from Brooklyn?
In cruise ship cases, where the civil claim must be filed is often determined by the terms of the affected passenger’s ticket contract. In many cases, these contracts specify that any legal action against a cruise line must be brought in federal court in Florida. That means that even a cruise line that operates out of the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal could require lawsuits to be filed in the state of Florida.
In addition to determining where a claim must be filed, these ticket contracts may also impose strict deadlines for various kinds of legal action. It’s important to carefully review all the fine print on a ticket contract to make sure you’re pursuing your claim in the proper venue and doing so within the time allotted to do so. If you fail to provide written notice within the timeframe provided in the contract or miss another important filing deadline, your legal options could become limited.
Experienced cruise ship sexual assault lawyers understand the nuances of taking legal action against cruise lines and their employees. At Hickey Law Firm, we have experience interpreting and complying with the stipulations of cruise ticket contracts and can help sexual assault survivors understand how these contracts could impact their ability to recover compensation.
Speak with a cruise ship sexual assault lawyer for Brooklyn Cruise Terminal departures
No one plans for their cruise vacation to end in a traumatic assault. When these crimes take place, however, there are legal options available to help survivors fight for accountability.
If you were sexually assaulted on a cruise ship that originated from the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, don’t assume that New York will be the appropriate venue for your civil claim. Depending on the requirements of your ticket contract, you may need to file a claim in Florida and turn to a Florida-based attorney to help you move forward.
At Hickey Law Firm, we understand how complicated and confusing cruise ship sexual assault cases can be – especially when there are questions about where and when you’re supposed to file a claim. Our team is committed to helping survivors understand and exercise their rights following a sexual assault by pursuing civil claims for compensation.
If you’re interested in exploring your legal options following a cruise ship sexual assault, give us a call today or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation with a member of our team. We’re here to listen to your story and help you make the decision that’s right for you.