MARITIME DISPUTE RESOLUTION EXPERIENCE

Claims filed under the Jones Act for injuries aboard ship are highly specialized, as are claims for lost profits due to shipping delays and seagoing losses. Mr. Polsky has been called upon to settle these specialized disputes.

REPRESENTATIVE MARITIME CASES HANDLED BY MR. POLSKY

• Captain of fishing vessel performing maintenance procedures in engine room when pant leg became caught in a rotating drive shaft coupler. Leg drawn in and snapped resulting in compound fracture and third degree burns. Issue whether owner of ship liable under Section 3 of FELA due to exposed drive shaft. (Settlement $450 k)
• Jones Act claim in connection with injuries aboard ship resulting in an above the knee amputation. (Settlement $200 k) This was followed by claim against National Maritime Pension & Welfare Plan physician by ship owner for negligently certifying plaintiff as fit for sea duty prior to the incident. (Settlement)
• Fall overboard from fishing boat resulting in death of husband. Fall not observed and body not located. Decedent had been warned not to sit on the railings. (Settlement $275 k)
• Service failures at terminal disrupted weekly cargo shipment of perishable goods leading to eventual repudiation of contract by shipper. Action to recover excess costs, and lost profit against affirmative claim for lost rentals. (Settlement lost rental of $1.8 mm adjusted by set-offs of $1.575 and adjustment of other invoices for net settlement of $100 k paid to terminal by shipper)
• Decedent fell off powerboat in Colorado River and suffered severed head when it was caught in propellers. Decedent owned the powerboat and a friend was operating it while decedent tried to clear a buoy. Engine surge caused by a combination of unskilled operator and kink in transmission caused decedent to fall overboard. First attorney for family settled with operator unaware that this cut off all damages for the percentage of negligence attributed to the operator. Mediation with manufacturer and assembler of the powerboat, and the company that performed the first service. (Settlement $250 k) Settlement followed by action against first attorney.
• Coverage dispute following sinking of vessel in calm seas. Insurer asserted that vessel not seaworthy at the time of the sinking due to rust out of drain plug. Jury ruled against insurer and mediation utilized to resolve bad faith claim and insurer's errors and omissions claim against counsel at the underlying trial.
• Claim by estate of decedent. Decedent was working on a container ship at the Long Beach Shipyard when he was run over by a crane. His legs were severed and he died. At issue was the status of decedent under the Jones Act. Specifically whether he could be classified as a seaman possessing an employment related connection to a vessel in navigation thereby giving rise to tort damages, or an employee of the vessel owner thereby giving rise to worker's compensation benefits. (Settlement in tort)

OTHER RELATED EXPERIENCE

Mr. Polsky is a sought after negotiation skills trainer and has lectured throughout the United States. He is an adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Southern California Law School, where he teaches a course he designed on ADR and negotiation, and at the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law, where he teaches courses on mediation and arbitration in the LLM program. He has resolved thousands of complex commercial and serious injury disputes and was named one of the top 20 mediators and arbitrators in California by the Daily Journal. Local bar association annual reviews consistently give Mr. Polsky high marks for fairness as an arbitrator and tenacity and commitment as a mediator.