The maritime industry is hugely important for Alaska and the coastal and largest city of Anchorage. From harbor and port workers, longshoremen, and cruise ship crew members to the many people involved in the local commercial fishing industry, maritime jobs are a big deal here. If you work in the maritime industry and get hurt, an experienced Anchorage maritime lawyer can help get you the compensation you deserve.
What Is an Anchorage Maritime Lawyer?
An Anchorage, Alaska, maritime lawyer specializes in maritime law and serves clients in the state but especially those involved in the maritime industry in Anchorage. Maritime workers do dangerous jobs and may be hurt or killed. Maritime lawyers help these workers and their families navigate the legal system to get justice and compensation.
Get Matched with a Leading Maritime Attorney in Your Area
- Find the leading maritime lawyers in your area
- Discover how to get compensation as fast as possible
- Learn your legal rights as an injured maritime worker
The Dangers of Anchorage Maritime Jobs
Many jobs in the maritime industry in Anchorage involve daily hazards. Perhaps the most dangerous are commercial fishing and crabbing.
If you work on a commercial fishing or crabbing boat, you take serious risks whenever you go on the water. You face long, grueling hours, days, and weeks of work out on rough seas with bitterly cold weather. Falling overboard and drowning or succumbing to hypothermia is an ever-present risk.
Harbor and other workers aboard ships also face daily risks from working with heavy equipment, trip and fall hazards, bad weather, rough water, and negligence.
Negligence on the part of an employer can take many forms:
- Inadequate training
- Lack of safety equipment
- Broken machinery or equipment
- Faulty electronics
- Inadequate break time for workers
Any of these things, and many others, can lead to accidents on the job that can cause injuries and even deaths.
Protection Under the Jones Act
If you work as a seaman and your injury or sickness was at least in part caused by an employer’s negligence, you are protected by the Jones Act. You have a right to file a compensation claim.
The Jones Act can help you get money to pay for your current and future medical bills, for lost wages and lost future earnings, and for more intangible expenses like the pain and suffering you endured because of the accident you experienced.
The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA)
Not all workers in the maritime industry are classified as seamen, the only workers to be covered under the Jones Act, which is why the LHWCA exists.
It extends rights to harbor workers, longshoremen, and other workers involved in the industry who do not spend a significant portion of their days working on ships.
Regardless of negligence, you may qualify for compensation under the LHWCA if you are injured or get sick on the job. This law acts like a workers’ compensation program, so you don’t have to find blame anywhere; you only have to make a claim.
The Death on the High Seas Act
The Death on the High Seas Act is designed to provide benefits and compensation for the dependent loved ones of those who die on the job out at sea.
Working in the maritime industry, especially in the waters off of Anchorage and the rest of Alaska, is highly dangerous. This is one of the most hazardous industries in some of the world’s most dangerous waters.
If you work here, especially as a commercial fisherman, you have a real chance of dying on the job. If you are out to sea, at least three nautical miles from the coast, and you experience a fatal accident, your loved ones will be bereft, but they can also collect benefits. Your loved ones can get money for your lost wages, funeral expenses, and pain and suffering.
The Alaska Fishermen’s Fund
Because the work of commercial fishing around Anchorage and Alaska is so dangerous, the state has set up a special fund that can help injured commercial fishermen or their loved ones if they die on the job.
The fund pays out up to $10,000 to cover lost wages, medical bills, and other expenses associated with the illness or injuries incurred in an accident on the job. That money can also go to dependents of deceased fishermen. Still, the fund is meant only for workers who have already exhausted other sources of public funding and insurance payouts.
Finding an Anchorage Maritime Lawyer
If you live and work in the Anchorage maritime industry, you can find experienced maritime lawyers prepared to help you fight for benefits if your job causes you to get hurt or sick.
The maritime laws covering you and your industry can be confusing if you have not studied the law extensively. These lawyers have specialized in maritime laws to help people like you.
To ensure you correctly determine which law applies to you, which funds you qualify for, and how to make a claim, rely on the expert advice of a good lawyer.
This professional can also help you make deadlines and can represent you in court or arbitration if your battle goes that far. Most of all, a lawyer will give you the best chance of getting the most money out of your claim.