Longshoreman Injured When Rusted Ship Deck Bracket Failed Settles Mid-Trial in Hudson County
After trial: The case settled during trial, so there was no verdict or appeal. The settlement was paid by the vessel owner's insurance carrier.
Won by Ginarte Gonzalez & Winograd, LLP.
James Jordan, a 42-year-old longshoreman, was hurt in June 2012 when a section of deck on the MV Ever Decent gave way at the Port of Elizabeth. He herniated a disc at L5-S1 and needed a laminectomy and fusion. After eight days of trial in Hudson County, the vessel owner's insurer settled the case for $2.8 million in March 2015.
What happened
On June 8, 2012, James Jordan, a 42-year-old longshoreman, was working aboard the MV Ever Decent at the Port of Elizabeth, New Jersey. He stepped onto an area of the ship's deck and it gave way, sinking about six inches. His foot went down into the collapsed section, he fell backward, and his lower back struck part of the vessel as he landed in a sitting position.
He was diagnosed with a herniated disc at L5-S1, the lowest level of the lumbar spine. Jordan underwent a laminectomy and a spinal fusion, with screws and rods installed. He claimed permanent work restrictions and lost earnings, and said he could no longer ride motorcycles for recreation.
Because a longshoreman cannot sue his own employer in tort, the claim ran against the vessel. Jordan sued Evergreen Marine Singapore PTE, the Singapore-based owner and operator of the ship, along with related Evergreen entities, under Section 905(b) of the Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act. Richard M. Winograd tried the case for Jordan in Hudson County Superior Court before Judge Patrick Arre. Every defendant other than the vessel owner was dismissed before trial.
The liability theory turned on a rusted metal bracket under the deck that had collapsed. Jordan's mechanical engineering expert testified that the bracket failed because of corrosion and showed a pattern indicating it had been failing gradually, which meant a proper inspection would have caught and repaired it before anyone stepped there. Under Section 905(b), a vessel owner answers for hazards it knew of or should have found through reasonable care, so inspection practice was the central question.
The defense, represented by Paul M. Keane, took the opposite position on both liability and damages. It argued that any condition behind the collapse was latent and could not have been found by reasonable inspections. Its neurosurgeon testified that Jordan already had foot drop, obesity and knee injuries that contributed to the fall and to his condition afterward.
The jury had heard eight days of testimony before the case resolved. On March 17, 2015, the vessel owner's insurance carrier settled with Jordan for $2.8 million, ending the case without a verdict and without an appeal.
Sources
This account is drawn from contemporaneous public reporting and the court record.
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