Suffer a broken bone or fracture in a maritime accident? Contact the top maritime broken bones lawyer to seek justice and compensation.
When a fracture happens aboard a vessel or at the docks, you face immediate challenges that landlubbers never encounter. Your employer’s insurance company starts building their defense while you’re still in the emergency room. The ship sails on without you. Your maintenance and cure gets delayed or denied.
Meanwhile, surgery bills pile up, physical therapy stretches for months, and you can’t work with hardware holding your bones together.
The Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor understands maritime fractures are different. Federal laws govern your case, not state rules. Your filing deadlines are shorter. The compensation you can recover depends on whether you’re a seaman, longshoreman, or passenger. We handle broken bone cases at the Port of Los Angeles and on cruise ships.
We know which law applies to your situation, how to document your claim properly, and how to fight maritime insurers who treat injured workers like damaged cargo.
Contact us to schedule a free consultation and discover how a maritime fracture attorney can help you seek the compensation and justice you deserve.
How Our Maritime Attorneys Help Victims with Broken Bones & Fractures
A broken bone caused by someone else’s negligence means you are facing surgery bills, weeks off work, and insurance adjusters who want to pay as little as possible. The Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor has represented injured maritime workers, longshoremen, and cruise ship passengers from Long Beach, California for more than 50 years. We handle the legal fight so you can focus on getting better.
Here is what we do from day one:
- Free case evaluation: We review your accident and explain your rights at no cost.
- Evidence preservation: We secure incident reports, deck photos, and witness statements before they disappear.
- Medical coordination: We work alongside your doctors to make sure your records reflect the full extent of your injury.
- Insurer communication: We take every call from cruise lines, employers, and adjusters so you never say something that hurts your claim.
Do You Have a Broken Bone Injury Claim?
If someone else’s carelessness caused your fracture, you likely have a legal claim for compensation. Maritime fractures often happen because a company ignored a known hazard to save money.
Common causes we see include:
- Slips on wet, oily, or unmarked decks
- Falls from ladders, gangways, or stairways
- Being struck by cargo, tools, or rigging
- Crane, forklift, and winch impacts at the Port of Los Angeles or Port of Long Beach
- Tender boat boarding falls during cruise shore excursions
- Mooring line snap-back incidents
A pattern we consistently see in fracture claims at the Port of Long Beach is that mooring line snapback injuries get attributed to the injured worker’s positioning rather than the vessel crew’s failure to follow standard line handling procedure.
We obtain the vessel’s deck log and crew statements immediately, before the ship’s next voyage, to establish what the crew actually did in the moments before the injury.
What Laws Protect Maritime Workers and Passengers with Fractures?
The law that applies to your broken bone injury depends on your job and where the accident happened. Maritime law is a specialized federal area, and the wrong legal strategy can cost you significant compensation.
| Your Status | Law That Applies | What You Can Recover |
| Seaman on a vessel | Jones Act and unseaworthiness | Lost wages, medical care, pain and suffering, maintenance and cure |
| Longshoreman or harbor worker | Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) | Medical benefits, wage replacement, permanent disability |
| Worker hurt by a vessel | Section 905(b) third-party claim | Full tort damages on top of LHWCA benefits |
| Cruise ship passenger | General Maritime Law | Medical costs, lost income, pain and suffering |
The Jones Act gives injured seamen the right to sue their employer directly for negligence. The LHWCA is a federal no-fault system that covers longshore and harbor workers regardless of who caused the accident. We identify which law applies to your situation and build a case around it.
What Types of Fractures Do We Handle?
We handle every type of fracture from stress fractures and hairline cracks to compound breaks that require surgical hardware and months of physical therapy. The more severe your fracture, the greater the medical costs and lost income, and the stronger your claim for full compensation.
Fractures we regularly handle include:
- Open and compound fractures
- Comminuted fractures, where the bone breaks into multiple pieces
- Hip, pelvis, and femur fractures
- Wrist, forearm, and shoulder fractures
- Vertebral compression fractures
- Rib and sternum fractures
- Ankle and tibia fractures
What to Do After a Fracture on a Vessel, Dock, or Cruise Ship
The steps you take in the days after your accident directly affect the strength of your claim. Companies begin protecting themselves immediately, and you should too.
Step 1: Get Medical Care and Report the Injury
See a doctor immediately and file a written incident report with your employer or the ship’s crew. Under the LHWCA, you must notify your employer within 30 days of the injury. Most cruise ship ticket contracts require written notice within six months.
Step 2: Document the Scene and Identify Witnesses
Photograph the hazard that caused your fall, your footwear, your visible injuries, and any equipment involved. Collect the names and contact information of coworkers or fellow passengers who saw what happened, before the crew repairs the area.
Step 3: Avoid Recorded Statements and Signing Forms
Never give a recorded statement or sign any documents from a cruise line, employer, or insurance adjuster before speaking with an attorney. These representatives are trained to use your words to minimize your payout.
You also have the right in most cases to see a doctor of your own choosing rather than a company-appointed physician.
Step 4: Call a Maritime Fracture Attorney
One call to the Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor locks down your evidence, protects your filing deadlines, and stops insurer pressure before it starts.
Who May Be Liable for Your Fracture at Sea or in Port?
More than one party often shares responsibility for a maritime fracture. We investigate every angle to identify all liable parties and pursue every available source of compensation.
- Employers: Liable under the Jones Act for negligent training, poor supervision, or unsafe working conditions.
- Vessel owners: Liable for unseaworthy conditions aboard the ship under Section 905(b).
- Port and terminal operators: Responsible for dock hazards and equipment failures at facilities like those at the Port of Long Beach.
- Equipment manufacturers: Responsible when defective cranes, winches, or safety gear cause an injury.
- Cruise lines and shore excursion vendors: Liable when passenger injuries result from negligence aboard the ship or during organized excursions.
Across the maritime fracture claims we’ve worked through at the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach, adjusters routinely try to isolate the claim to a single defendant, such as the employer, even when a defective crane or an unsecured gangway from a separate contractor also contributed to the fall.
We investigate every piece of equipment and every contractor connected to the hazard before accepting a defendant’s version of events.
“The Law firm of Charles D. Naylor accomplished and successfully fought for my case where other attorneys wouldn’t even bother looking at my complex case. Mr. George Jones, with his professional staff, carried out this nailbiting process like a breeze. Thank you.” – AW, Defense Base Act Client
What Compensation Can You Recover for a Broken Bone?
What you can recover depends on which law applies to your case. We pursue every category of damages available so that a single accident does not permanently set back your financial stability.
- Seamen under the Jones Act can recover lost wages, all medical expenses, pain and suffering, and maintenance and cure. Maintenance and cure covers your daily living expenses and medical treatment until you reach maximum medical improvement.
- Longshore workers under the LHWCA receive medical benefits and two thirds of their average weekly wage while they are unable to work. We also pursue separate third-party claims against negligent vessel owners or contractors for full tort damages on top of those benefits.
- Cruise ship passengers can recover medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering under General Maritime Law.
Injuries that require surgery, implanted hardware, or long-term physical therapy typically result in higher compensation. We document every medical expense and work limitation to make sure the full value of your claim is presented.
“This was my first major injury and also first dealings with an attorney in this sort of case. The firm was exceptionally professional, well informed and knowledgeable of injury cases. They built my trust from the first interview and proved to be the perfect firm for me to use. My attorney, Peter Forgie, is wonderful and kind, and an easy person to work with.
My questions were answered and my concerns were treated as important. I was treated with respect. Thanks to all of you for your time and effort on my part. I really appreciate it!” – Darlene, Cruise Injury Client
How Long Do You Have to File a Maritime Fracture Claim?
Maritime filing deadlines are much shorter than standard personal injury deadlines, and missing them ends your right to compensation entirely.
- LHWCA: Under the LHWCA, notify your employer within 30 days and file the formal claim within one year.
- Jones Act: Three years from the date of the injury.
- Cruise ship claims: Most ticket contracts require written notice within six months and a lawsuit filed within one year and limit venue to Los Angeles or Miami.
Evidence on vessels is especially vulnerable. Ships sail internationally, crew members rotate off, and surveillance footage gets overwritten quickly. We send legal preservation notices to all parties immediately after you contact us.
What we see consistently in maritime fracture claims is that clients treated at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center or St. Mary Medical Center often need a second surgery or hardware revision months after the initial procedure, and insurers use that gap in treatment to argue the later surgery was unrelated to the original accident.
We work with the treating orthopedic surgeon to document the connection between the original fracture and any follow up procedure.
Why Choose the Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor?
Maritime injury law is a narrow specialty, and a general personal injury firm will not know the difference between a Jones Act claim and an LHWCA claim. That difference can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor brings:
- Experienced maritime injury attorneys handling cases in state and federal courts throughout Southern California.
- AV Preeminent rating from Martindale-Hubbell, the highest professional and ethical rating available
- Southern California Super Lawyer recognition, earned repeatedly over the course of our practice
- Academic authority through Charles D. Naylor’s role as adjunct professor of Admiralty and Maritime Law at Chapman University School of Law
- Representative favorable outcomes in longshore wrongful death and LHWCA amputation injury cases.
We are located in Long Beach, minutes from the Port of Los Angeles and Port of Long Beach, and we are available to step in immediately when you need us most.
“Working with Mr. Charles Naylor and George Jones was reassuring and highly professional. I definitely would like to thank them for their efforts, as well as (my paralegal) Gladis Morales.” – F.G., Cruise Injury Client
Frequently Asked Questions About Maritime Broken Bone Claims
Do Jones Act Seamen and LHWCA Workers Have Different Deadlines for Fracture Claims?
Yes. Seamen covered under the Jones Act have three years from the date of injury to file a lawsuit. Workers covered under the LHWCA must notify their employer within 30 days and file a formal claim within one year.
Can a Longshore Worker Receive LHWCA Benefits and Sue a Negligent Vessel Owner at the Same Time?
Yes. LHWCA benefits come from your employer on a no-fault basis, and a separate Section 905(b) lawsuit against a negligent vessel owner is permitted at the same time. We manage both claims to maximize your total recovery.
Does a Cruise Ship Passenger Have to Use the Cruise Line’s Doctor After a Fracture?
No. You have the right to seek independent medical care after a cruise ship injury. We strongly recommend seeing your own physician to ensure your treatment decisions are made in your best interest, not the cruise line’s.
What Happens to a Fracture Claim If the Responsible Party Disputes Fault?
We investigate the accident independently, gather physical evidence, and work with maritime safety experts to establish exactly what went wrong and who is responsible. Disputed liability cases require thorough preparation, which is why we begin building your case from the first day you contact us.
Does a Longer Recovery Time Increase the Value of a Maritime Fracture Claim?
Yes. Extended recovery periods mean more lost wages, more medical bills, and in some cases permanent physical limitations. We calculate every financial loss including future earning capacity and long-term care costs to present the full value of your claim.
Contact the Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor
A serious fracture puts your paycheck, your medical care, and your family’s financial stability at risk all at once. The Law Offices of Charles D. Naylor offers a free and confidential consultation to review your accident and explain your options. We work on a contingency fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you. Call us at (310) 514-1200 or complete our online form to speak with an experienced maritime fracture attorney today.
