FRIEDMAN, JAMES & BUCHSBAUM LLP, America’s Premier Maritime Personal Injury Firm, has been included in the 2024 Best Lawyers® New York Area Advertising Supplement, as nominated by other leading lawyers.  Friedman, James & Buchsbaum does not pay to participate, nor are we allowed to pay or participate, as noted by the editors of Best Lawyers®: ABOUT BEST LAWYERS For more than four decades, Best Lawyers lists have been compiled by conducting exhaustive peer-review surveys in which tens of thousands of leading lawyers confidentially evaluate their professional peers. If the votes for ..read more

In Owen v. Carnival Corp., No. 18-25372, 2022 WL 18023309 (S.D. Fla. Nov. 21, 2022), the Court found that a passenger failed to provide written notice of her claim to Carnival within 185 days as required by her ticket and dismissed the case! Moral of the story: READ YOUR TICKET (and call us ASAP)! Susan Owen and family took a seven-day cruise on the CARNIVAL BREEZE. Susan’s eye began to bother her and she sought treatment from the ship’s medical facility. The ship’s doctor prescribed medication which didn’t help. After disembarking, Owen visited her own doctor and then a specialist who prescri ..read more

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Of all of the issues plaguing Puerto Rico, from hurricanes to earthquakes, one of the most insidious has been the Jones Act. The Jones Act is part of the merchant marine act of 1920 and it requires goods shipped between ports in the United States to be done by U.S. owned, flagged, and U.S. built ships operated by at least 75% U.S. citizens. The law, intended to create and protect American jobs in the years after World War 1, also provided security to the nation during war times.  The Jones Act has a unique effect on Puerto Ricans, particularly when faced with natural disasters such as Hur ..read more

In April of 2014, a large South Korean ferry carrying a group of high school students capsized and sank off the coast of South Korea. The accident left nearly 300 people out of 462 passengers unaccounted for and presumed dead. Human error was blamed for the tragedy. The crew, almost all of whom survived, was accused of abandoning the ship with passengers trapped below deck. The captain was eventually sentenced to 36 years in prison.  On July 5, 2018, another ferry capsized, this one en route to Phuket Island. Of the 105 passengers to experience the ferry disaster 47 of those people died ..read more

Most people think of cruise ship excursions as a time for rest and relaxation, and for the vast majority of cruise-goers that is the case. However, should you experience a slip and fall or other injuries while abroad a cruise ship, it can ruin what should have been a great vacation. As an injured passenger you would no doubt hope that the cruise ship company can be made to cover your medical bills, however, being injured aboard a cruise ship is not the same as being injured in, for example, a car accident. Cruise ship passengers have limited rights when it comes to accident claims.  Accor ..read more

Friedman, James & Buchsbaum LLP Partner Andrew V. Buchsbaum is a featured speaker at the Tulane University Admiralty Law Institute to be held in New Orleans from March 30 thru April 1, 2022. Mr. Buchsbaum, a 1985 graduate of Tulane Law School and former editor of the Tulane Maritime Law Journal (formerly known as The Maritime Lawyer), will address topics concerning the Jones Act, which provides protection to our merchant mariner seamen clients. Tulane University is acknowledged around the world as a leader in the admiralty field. Every other spring, hundreds of lawyers, both practicing and ..read more

Maritime Geography Zones are made up of three loosely defined elements, the meanings of which have slowly changed throughout history. Their interpretations are important when the Jones Act comes into play. According to the Naval Operations Concept of the US Navy in 2010, “blue water” refers to the open ocean; “green water” refers to coastal waters, ports, and harbors; and “brown water” refers to “all navigable rivers and their estuaries”. Some include bays and the first 100 nautical miles from shore, including the Mississippi River and its tributaries, which are also considered navigable water ..read more

Historically, cruise ships have had a hands-off policy on the safety of swimmers in their pool and hot tub areas. However, after several drownings or near-drownings in recent years, things are changing.  Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas was the first in a series of ships to add lifeguards to their children and family swim areas. The lack of lifeguards on cruise ships and hotels has over time become a contentious issue. The providers tend to stress parental supervision in lieu of certified lifeguard staff. However, after a series of passengers—mostly children—have died from drowning, ch ..read more

On July 19, 2018, a duck boat accident resulted in the deaths of seventeen people out of 31 people on board including 16 passengers and one crew member. The Branson, Missouri disaster has an interesting twist, however, because a United States District Judge found that Admiralty Jurisdiction does not apply to Table Rock Lake, where the duck boat sank, due to a thunderstorm, killing 17.  A duck boat is an amphibious tourist boat originally used during WWII and the Korean War. After these wars duck boats were repurposed for leisure cruises in small bodies of water.  The owner of the Bra ..read more