Doyle Dennis Avery LLP has been retained to bring an offshore injury claim against an American company for a foreign national in the District Court of Harris County, Texas. This claim is brought under general maritime law and admiralty law, under 28 U.S.C. § 1441. The lawsuit is on behalf of a citizen and resident of the United Kingdom who was injured while working for an American company, Vantage Drilling International, onboard a drillship off the coast of Egypt. Vantage Drilling International was the owner and/or operator of the drillship and employed the medic who was involved in treating and assessing Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s Client’s injuries.
Vantage Drilling International, like many global companies based in the United States, often employs workers from countries across the globe. The lawyers at Doyle Dennis Avery LLP have decades of experience helping domestic and foreign citizens pursue and successfully recover on maritime and offshore injury claims against American companies operating globally.
The claim, which is brought under general maritime and admiralty law, is based upon the negligence of Vantage Drilling, by and through their employees and officers, who created dangerous conditions that proximately resulted in Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client’s injuries. Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client was working as an electronics technician for Vantage Drilling on their drillship, the Tungsten Explorer. At initial arrival and boarding to the Tungsten Explorer off the coast of Egypt in early June 2019, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client was certified as “good” mental and physical condition. On or about June 26, 2019, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client began to feel ill, and his supervisor instructed him to present to the rig medic. At this evaluation by the rig medic on June 27, 2019 Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client was diagnosed with a bacterial and viral infection. After this diagnosis, Vantage Drilling, their employees, and officers failed to provide Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client with adequate facilities, housing, medical supervision, and equipment to recuperate from his illness. Even diagnosed with a serious infection, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client was sent back to work without additional care or supervision. Shortly after Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client returned to work, the client suffered further issues with the illness and fell near the stairs of the electrical workshop as a result of his illness. This devastating fall was directly caused by the negligence of the defendants, who through their employees and officers created dangerous conditions. As a result of the fall from significant distance, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client suffered a severe head injury, including parietal fractures, intra-cerebral hematoma, counter-coup brain injury ad left petrous bone fractures. These life changing injuries devastated Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client physically and mentally. The defendant’s failure to provide a safe work environment and adequate medical care among other charges ultimately consequents negligence under maritime and admiralty law. As such, Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client is seeking recovery and damages for their client to help the client continue to recover and live after a life-altering incident.
The incident, caused by the negligence of Vantage Drilling, their employees, and officers, resulted in severe injuries to Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client, a previously healthy, able-bodied workingman. Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client required immediate medical treatment due to the nature and severity of his injuries. Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client still suffers from this incident with permanent physical and physiological limitations. As such, it is also in reasonable probability he will need additional medical treatment stemming from this incident. Doyle Dennis Avery LLP’s client has been exposed to significant damages that are owed under maritime law. This incident from Defendant’s negligence not only physically and permanently impacted our client’s everyday life but also caused a large loss of earnings and wage-earning ability. Under admiralty law and maritime law, this injured maritime worker will be entitled to seek lost wages and future earning capacity, past and future medical expenses, pain and suffering, mental anguish, physical impairment and other damages.
The hard work of international offshore workers from all over the world provides American maritime, and oil and gas companies the ability to provide their services throughout the globe. The American maritime companies move goods throughout international waters from port to port with the support and guidance of many employees who are not American citizens. American oil and gas companies search and extract natural resources in offshore fields across the globe and rely on many foreign nationals for their operations to succeed. These foreign nationals work hard and serve important roles for the American companies and their abilities to operate throughout the world. As such, foreign nationals that are operating in American or International waters for American companies may be provided some protections, under United States maritime and admiralty laws, if they are hurt on the job. American citizens working as admiralty and offshore workers for domestic companies are protected under a complex set of laws, including admiralty law, maritime law, Section 905(b), the Jones Act, and other offshore injury rules. Some of these protections may be available to foreign nationals injured while working for an American company in the maritime and offshore industry. Our firm has decades of experience helping foreign nationals in these industries understand their legal rights afforded under United States Admiralty and Maritime Law. These cases often are difficult to pursue for foreign nationals against American corporations due to issues of jurisdiction, venue challenges, and lack of knowledge of the U.S. legal system. The lawyers at Doyle Dennis Avery LLP understand these challenges, and with our experience, we can help you understand whether you have a right to a claim after an injury on the job.
If you have questions about your rights under maritime and admiralty law, following workplace injury, the lawyers at Doyle Dennis Avery LLP can assist in providing a free evaluation of your claim, based upon decades of experience and success in representing injured maritime and offshore workers of numerous nationalities in various locations in the world.
