Case at a glance
- Recovery: Confidential Settlement
- Injury: Head and back injuries
- Practice: Maritime injuries
- Attorneys: Brian Beckcom and Brendan Fradkin
An exposed task while the vessel was underway
Water was entering through a hawsepipe, an opening at the bow used for the anchor line. Landen was assigned to help install a plug while the vessel remained underway.
The task required two crew members working together. Landen took the outboard position near the front of the vessel while another crew member assisted from inside. During the operation, a wave struck Landen and threw him against the rigging.
He reported pain after the impact. His condition worsened aboard the vessel, and he later received hospital care after reaching port. Headaches, back pain and difficulty with everyday activities continued after the voyage.
Reconstructing the task and the safety decisions
The VB Attorneys team gathered the crew’s accounts, vessel records, video and deposition testimony. The investigation addressed why the opening was being plugged at sea and what precautions had been taken before Landen was sent to do the work.
Brendan retained Captain Joseph Derie, a marine safety consultant and retired Coast Guard officer, to evaluate the evidence. Derie reviewed depositions, vessel operating documents, logs, crew statements and video recordings.
Derie concluded that the operation lacked an adequate pre-task safety analysis and supervision. He identified changing the vessel’s course and using head protection as measures that should have been considered before the work began.
His report also examined the timing of the task. He noted that the order to plug the opening came after a high-water alarm sounded and questioned why the water entering the vessel had not been addressed sooner.
The response to Landen’s injuries mattered too
The investigation continued beyond the moment Landen was struck. The team examined how his symptoms were evaluated on board and when he received medical care.
Derie’s opinion was that the response was inadequate: a physician ashore was not contacted to assist with treating Landen’s injuries, and the vessel did not change course to get him ashore earlier for treatment.
The defense disputed the nature of what had happened to Landen. The team developed witness testimony about his complaints aboard the vessel and assembled the medical evidence documenting the symptoms that continued afterward.
Headaches and back pain affected activities that had been part of his work as a deckhand. His treatment and rehabilitation became an important part of presenting how the incident affected his life beyond the voyage.
Continuing the investigation after mediation
The first mediation did not resolve the case. Brian, Brendan and the VB Attorneys team continued developing the evidence, including testimony from a volunteer who had recorded video aboard the vessel.
The team also prepared for an inspection of the vessel. The case settled before that inspection took place.
The confidential settlement resolved Landen’s maritime injury claim. The work combined the crew’s accounts, vessel records, medical evidence and a marine-safety analysis of the task he had been sent to perform.
Landen’s words
VB fought for me when I wasn’t strong enough to fight for myself.
Landen T., Google review
Questions about the case
Related legal help
Learn about maritime injury claims, or read about another maritime workplace injury case.
To speak with VB Attorneys about an injury aboard a vessel, call 877-724-7800 for a free consultation.
Every case is different. Prior results depend on the facts of the individual case and do not guarantee a similar outcome.