How Maritime Law Affects Cruise Ship Injury Claims

When someone is injured on a cruise, the legal process followed to recover compensation for their injuries and expenses is based on maritime law, also known as admiralty law. This differs significantly from how personal injury claims work when they occur on land.

If you or a loved one suffered an injury on a cruise, maritime law can affect your right to sue, the process for filing a claim, and other aspects of your case. In addition, other factors can play a role in dictating how your case will work. A Florida cruise ship accident lawyer can help you understand your rights and manage the legal claims process.

Understanding the Need for Maritime Law

Maritime law comes from statutes, conventions, and treaties in place to govern private maritime activities that occur on navigable waters. This includes oceans and most other areas where cruise ships travel. Maritime laws deal with more than just personal injuries aboard vessels. They govern shipping, navigation, salvage, and operations on seafaring vessels, too.

Maritime laws are necessary because these boats travel through international waters, between U.S. ports, or to foreign destinations. During these trips, it is impossible to determine which state’s laws might apply. 

Who Can File an Injury Claim Under Maritime Law?

Maritime law allows passengers and crew members to pursue an injury claim if they were hurt because of negligence aboard the ship. This negligence could include dangerous conditions, poor maintenance, or many other causes. Many cruise ship injury cases are filed by passengers, but crew members have their own legal remedies under 46 U.S. Code § 30104.

Some of the ways passengers suffer injuries on cruise ships include: 

• Slips and falls on wet decks
• Accidents on stairwells
• Injuries from malfunctioning equipment or pool areas
• Assaults by crew members or other passengers
• Negligent supervision during excursions

To win a case, passengers must usually show that the cruise line acted negligently and that the negligence caused their injury. For example, if you were hurt because a crew member failed to clean up a spill in one of the ship’s lounges and you fell, a Florida slip and fall accident lawyer might build a case to recover compensation for you based on maritime law. 

How Your Cruise Ticket Affects Your Rights as an Injured Passenger

When you book a cruise, you agree to the cruise line’s terms and conditions. They are included on the back of your ticket or with your online itinerary. These terms could include: 

• Forum Selection Clause: This requires you to file any lawsuit in a specific court, often in the city where the cruise line is headquartered, even if you live elsewhere or the cruise departed from another state.
• A Deadline to Sue: Under maritime law, most cruise lines give passengers only a short time from the date of the injury to file a lawsuit. This could be as little as one year, which is much shorter than most states’ statutes of limitations.
• Notice Requirements: Some cruise contracts require injured passengers to give written notice of their claim within a few months of the incident and injury.

Because you agreed to these terms when you purchased the ticket, these are contractual and legal requirements. If you do not follow them, the court is unlikely to hear your case, even if it is valid. Working with an attorney familiar with cruise ship injuries will ensure you follow all the necessary terms. 

Where and How to File a Cruise Injury Lawsuit Based on Maritime Law

Many cruise lines require injured passengers to file their cruise ship lawsuits in federal court. This forum selection clause applies even if you were hurt in a foreign port or in international waters. Several major cruise lines require lawsuits to be filed in Miami federal court, where these companies do much of their business. 

If this applies in your case, you will want to work with an attorney who works in that jurisdiction and handles cases based on maritime law. For example, if your case must be heard in Miami, you want to hire a Florida personal injury lawyer who handles cruise ship injury claims regularly. 

How to Prove Negligence and Liability Under Maritime Law

Under maritime law, cruise lines owe their passengers a duty of care, taking reasonable steps to prevent foreseeable harm. This duty means they need to work to prevent dangerous situations and circumstances when possible. 

To prove negligence, you must show they failed to uphold their duty of care and that this failure caused your injuries and damages. Some evidence that might be available to prove negligence occurred includes: 

• Surveillance footage from the ship
• The ship’s maintenance logs
• Incident reports filed by crew members
• Documentation of the hazard, such as pictures you took
• Testimony from eyewitnesses, often other passengers or crew
• Medical records documenting your injury

Preserving this evidence quickly is essential. A maritime injury attorney can send spoliation letters to stop the cruise line from destroying or misplacing the evidence you need to support your claim. 

How Long Do You Have to Act on Your Case Based on Maritime Law?

While there is generally a two-year deadline set for filing injury cases in Florida per Florida Statutes § 95.11, you probably do not have that long to wait to file your cruise ship injury claim. The deadlines for filing a notice of intent and filing your lawsuit will likely depend on the terms and conditions set by your cruise ticket. 

Your best option is to contact a cruise ship injury lawyer as soon as possible so they can review your ticket and help you understand the timeline, limits, and other conditions set by your ticket and maritime law. 

Talk to Our Maritime Law Team About Your Cruise Ship Injury Claim Today

If you were hurt on a cruise, talk to our team about how a maritime injury attorney can help you as soon as possible. We offer free case reviews. We will evaluate your ticket’s legal terms and preserve the evidence necessary to hold the cruise line accountable.

Contact Chalik & Chalik Injury Lawyers today. Our team has been helping clients since 2003.