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Topic  1.1       Jurisdiction/Coverage—Generally

[ED. NOTE:  The following case is included for informational value only.]

Amerault v. Intelcom Support Services, Inc, (S. Ct. of Guam Case No. CVA03-007)(2004 Guam LEXIS 27 (Supreme Court of Guam Dec, 20, 2004).

            In this worker’s compensation case the court noted that it would consider as persuasive case law interpreting provisions of the LHWCA that are similar to provisions of Guam’s worker’s compensation law.  It’s rationale was that the LHWCA was modeled after the New York State statutory scheme regarding workers’ compensation.  Spencer-Kellogg &Ssons, Inc. v. Willard, 190 F.2d 830, 832 n.1 (3^rd Cir. 1951).  Thus, it looked to LHWCA case law to interpret “compensation” and “medical benefits.”

Topics  1.1      Jurisdiction—Generally

Hernandez v. Todd Shipyards Corp. (Unreported)(No. Civ. A. 04-1629)(E.D. La. July 8, 2004).

            At issue here was whether an action should be remanded to state court because of a lack of federal question. Originally the widow filed an action in Orleans Parish Civil District Court alleging only state court claims against her husband's former employers and other defendants arising from her husband's on-the-job exposure to asbestos and his death from malignant mesothelioma. The Defendants removed the action asserting that the plaintiff's state law claims were preempted by the LHWCA. The defendants asserted that the LHWCA was the plaintiff's sole and exclusive remedy and that the district court had original federal question jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331 and, therefore, that the action was removable pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1441.

            Notwithstanding circuit precedent holding that the LHWCA "does not create federal subject matter jurisdiction supporting removal," Garcia v. Amfels, Inc, 254 F.3d 585, 588 (5th Cir. 2001); see also Aaron v. Nat'l Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa., 876 F.2d 1157 (5th Cir. 1989), defendants argue that the analysis used in those cases was "expressly overruled" by the United States Supreme Court in Beneficial Nat'l Bank v. Anderson, 539 U.S. 1 (2003), and "abandoned" by the Fifth Circuit in Hoskins v. Bekins Van Lines, 343 F.3d 769 (5th Cir. 2003).

            Here, the court stated that "In Hoskins, the Fifth Circuit explained the effect of the Beneficial decision as follows: (1) the statute contains a civil enforcement provision that creates a cause of action that both replaces and protects the analogous area of state law; (2) there is a specific jurisdictional grant to the federal courts for enforcement of the right; and (3) there is a clear Congressional intent that claims brought under the federal law be removable." (Emphasis supplied by the Fifth Circuit.) The district court noted that the circuit court concluded, "We view Beneficial as evidencing a shift in focus from Congress's intent that the claim be removable, to Congress's intent that the federal action be exclusive." (Emphasis supplied by the Fifth Circuit.) The district court concluded, "Accordingly, because the LHWCA has been raised as a defense to plaintiff's state law causes of action and because defendants cannot demonstrate that the LHWCA satisfies the Fifth Circuit's three-prong complete preemption analysis as modified in Hoskins, this Court does not have subject matter jurisdiction over this action."

Topics  1.1      Jurisdiction—Generally

Hernandez v. Todd Shipyards Corp., ___ F. Supp 2d ___ (Civil Action No. 04-1629 Section: I/1)(E.D. La. July 8, 2004).

            The LHWCA does not completely preempt state law claims.  The district court noted that the Fifth Circuit has held that the LHWCA does not contain a civil enforcement provision that creates a federal cause of action, and that the LHWCA does not contain a specific jurisdictional grant to the federal courts for the enforcement of a right created by the LHWCA.  Garcia v. Amfels, Inc., 254 F.3d 585 (5^th Cir. 2001); see also Aaron v. Nat’l Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa., 876 F.2d 1157 (5^th Cir. 1989).  In the case at hand where exclusive remedial provisons of the LHWCA were raised by the defendant in response to the plaintiff’s purely state law claims, the LHWCA was nothing more than a statutory defense to a state court cause of action, and thus the matter could not be removed.

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Topic  1.1.1    Standing to File a Claim

Hernandez v. Todd Shipyards Corp. (Unreported)(No. Civ. A. 04-1629)(E.D. La. July 8, 2004).

            At issue here was whether an action should be remanded to state court because of a lack of federal question. Originally the widow filed an action in Orleans Parish Civil District Court alleging only state court claims against her husband's former employers and other defendants arising from her husband's on-the-job exposure to asbestos and his death from malignant mesothelioma. The Defendants removed the action asserting that the plaintiff's state law claims were preempted by the LHWCA. The defendants asserted that the LHWCA was the plaintiff's sole and exclusive remedy and that the district court had original federal question jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331 and, therefore, that the action was removable pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1441.

            Notwithstanding circuit precedent holding that the LHWCA "does not create federal subject matter jurisdiction supporting removal," Garcia v. Amfels, Inc, 254 F.3d 585, 588 (5th Cir. 2001); see also Aaron v. Nat'l Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa., 876 F.2d 1157 (5th Cir. 1989), defendants argue that the analysis used in those cases was "expressly overruled" by the United States Supreme Court in Beneficial Nat'l Bank v. Anderson, 539 U.S. 1 (2003), and "abandoned" by the Fifth Circuit in Hoskins v. Bekins Van Lines, 343 F.3d 769 (5th Cir. 2003).

            Here, the court stated that "In Hoskins, the Fifth Circuit explained the effect of the Beneficial decision as follows: (1) the statute contains a civil enforcement provision that creates a cause of action that both replaces and protects the analogous area of state law; (2) there is a specific jurisdictional grant to the federal courts for enforcement of the right; and (3) there is a clear Congressional intent that claims brought under the federal law be removable." (Emphasis supplied by the Fifth Circuit.) The district court noted that the circuit court concluded, "We view Beneficial as evidencing a shift in focus from Congress's intent that the claim be removable, to Congress's intent that the federal action be exclusive." (Emphasis supplied by the Fifth Circuit.) The district court concluded, "Accordingly, because the LHWCA has been raised as a defense to plaintiff's state law causes of action and because defendants cannot demonstrate that the LHWCA satisfies the Fifth Circuit's three-prong complete preemption analysis as modified in Hoskins, this Court does not have subject matter jurisdiction over this action."

Topic  1.1.1    Jurisdiction/Coverage--Standing to File a Claim

Hymel v. McDermott, Inc., 37 BRBS 160)(2003).

            Here the claimant sued his employer under the LHWCA as well as in state court against his employer and others, for negligence and intentional exposure to toxic substances in the work place. Executive officers of the employer during the claimant's employment (who were named as defendants in the state court suit) moved to intervene in the LHWCA claim. The ALJ denied the motion to intervene, finding that the issue raised by the interveners was not "in respect of "a compensation claim pursuant to Section 19(a) of the LHWCA. In a subsequent Decision and Order, the ALJ granted the claimant's motion to dismiss the claimant's claim with prejudice, pursuant to Section 33(g), as he settled a part of his state tort claim for less than his compensation entitlement without employer's prior written approval. The interveners filed an appeal with the Board. The Board dismissed the appeal, on the ground that as claimant's claim was no longer pending, the interveners were not adversely or aggrieved by the denial of their motion to intervene. Interveners then filed a motion for reconsideration of the Board's dismissal.

            The Board granted the motion for reconsideration, finding that the interveners are adversely affected or aggrieved by the ALJ's denial of their petition. The Board noted that Section 21(b)(3) of the LHWCA states that the Board is authorized to hear and determine appeals that raise a "substantial question of law or fact taken by a party in interest from decisions with respect to claims of employees" under the LHWCA. However, turning to the merits of the appeal, the Board found that the ALJ's decision was legally correct. The Board noted Fifth Circuit case law to support the ALJ's determination that he was without jurisdiction to rule on interveners' entitlement to tort immunity in a state court suit, as that issue was not essential to resolving issues related to the claimant's claim for compensation under the LHWCA. The Board went on to note that even if the claimant's claim had still been pending, the interveners' claim, while based on Section 33(i) of the LHWCA, is independent of any issue concerning the claimant's entitlement to compensation and/or medical benefits and the party liable for such. Section 33(i) does not provide the right of intervention.

Topic  1.1.1    Jurisdiction/Coverage--Standing to File a Claim

Hernandez v. todd Shipyards Corp., ___ F. Supp 2d ___ (Civil Action No. 04-1629 Section: I/1)(E.D. La. July 8, 2004).

            The LHWCA does not completely preempt state law claims.  The district court noted that the Fifth Circuit has held that the LHWCA does not contain a civil enforcement provision that creates a federal cause of action, and that the LHWCA does not contain a specific jurisdictional grant to the federal courts for the enforcement of a right created by the LHWCA.  Garcia v. Amfels, Inc., 254 F.3d 585 (5^th Cir. 2001); see also Aaron v. Nat’l Union Fire Ins. Co. of Pittsburgh, Pa., 876 F.2d 1157 (5^th Cir. 1989  In the case at hand where exclusive remedial provisons of the LHWCA were raised by the defendant in response to the plaintiff’s purely state law claims, the LHWCA was nothing more than a statutory defense to a state court cause of action, and thus the matter could not be removed.

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Topic  1.3       No Section 20(a) Presumption of Coverage

Watkins v. Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., 36 BRBS 21(2002).

            Held, a claimant's work emptying trash barrels from the side of a ship under construction constitutes maritime employment as it is integral to the shipbuilding and repair process, and moreover, is in furtherance of the employer's compliance with a federal regulation. Here the claimant was assigned to employer's Cleaning and Janitorial Department as a cleaner. The first half of her shift she drove a barrel dumpster, which is a machine that empties debris from 55-gallon drums. She or her partner drove the dumpster to the ships' sides, where the dumpster would pick up the full drums and dump them into the machine. The barrels contained trash and shipbuilding materials such as welding rods and strips of iron. The claimant testified that the shipbuilders would fill the barrels during the course of the day, and the crane would take the full barrels off the vessels and place the barrels at the ships' sides. In addition, the claimant and her partner would drive around to other shipyard buildings and dump dumpsters.

            This case is also noteworthy as to the Board's treatment of the Section 20(a) issue. The Director had argued that the ALJ should have given the claimant the benefit of the Section 20(a) presumption as to jurisdiction. The Board stated that it "need not address the general scope of the Section 20(a) presumption in coverage cases, as the courts have held that the Section 20(a) presumption is not applicable to the legal interpretation of the Act's coverage provision." The Board then cited to several circuits that support this view. However, the Board neglected to point out that several circuits hold opposing views.

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Topic  1.4       Jurisdiction/Coverage—LHWCA v. Jones Act

Baker v. Mason Construction Co., (Unpublished)(BRB No. 04-0220)(Nov. 18, 2004).

            The Board vacated the ALJ’s finding that the claimant was a member of a crew and therefore not entitled to coverage under the LHWCA.    The Board noted that the ALJ had found that the claimant performed deckhand duties and was subject to perils of the sea and the wind and the waves in his employment as a journeyman pile driver working on a mooring dolphin (free-standing set of pilings driven into the harbor bottom to support a mooring bollard.)  The parties had stipulated that the claimant was employed and ultimately injured upon actual navigable waters.  The Board observed  that “While the [ALJ] appropriately noted the deckhand duties claimant performed, he did not discuss the nature of the project on which claimant worked, which was a pile driving project to salvage and rebuild a wharf’s downstream ‘mooring dolphin.’  Ninth Circuit precedent interpreting Chandris [, Inc. v. Latsis, 515 U.S. 347 (1995)] requires an injury into whether claimant’s work in support of this project was ‘inherently vessel-related’ or ‘primarily sea-based.’”  The Board further noted that the ALJ did not discuss whether the moored nature of the work barge affected the inquiry into crew member status.

Topic   1.4      LHWCA v. Jones Act—Generally

Lacy v. Southern California Ship Services, 38 BRBS 12 (2004).

            Here the Board upheld the ALJ’s determination that there was substantial evidence to support a finding that the claimant was a longshoreman, rather than a seaman.  The claimant’s duties incorporated stereotypical tasks of both longshoremen and seamen.  He worked as a rigger and deckhand for the employer and was in the process of loading cargo from one of employer’s boats onto a ship anchored outside the breakwaters of the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor when a swinging pallet hit him and caused injury to his back.  The employer’s primary business is to provide water taxi and supply service to vessels at anchor in the harbor.

            While the claimant was called a “deckhand” he performed duties both on land and aboard vessels.  Claimant worked 35 percent of his work time on vessels and 65 percent on land.  The land time included time preparing cargo and vessels to be launched as well as disposal and clean up after docking.  When the claimant was assigned to a vessel, he and another deckhand would prepare the cargo nets and pallets for loading, including getting them from the storage area, using forklifts to load them onto the nets, and using a crane to load them onto the vessels.  The claimant would handle the dock lines upon leaving and returning to the dock, and he would ride in the vessel to deliver the supplies or passengers to the ship.  His main duty in transport was to be sure the supplies were secure, and he typically would have time to drink coffee during the ride.  Once the vessel arrived at the ship, he would assist in loading the supplies onto the ship, or help transfer passengers to/from the ship.

            The Board noted that the ALJ had correctly found that while the claimant met the first prong of the Chandris test (contributing to the function of the vessel and the accomplishment of its mission) he could not meet the second prong (a substantial connection to a vessel or fleet of vessels).  While recognizing that the claimant’s 35 percent of time spent on boats exceeded the 30 percent rule of thumb set forth by the Fifth Circuit, the ALJ had stated that time alone does not satisfy the inquiry.  Rather, the ALJ found that the connection must also be substantial in nature, and he found that the claimant’s on-board work was not “primarily sea-based” work.    The ALJ determined that the claimant’s “vessel-related” duties were “secondary and minor compared to his regular occupation as a loader and unloader” and that these longshore duties were “neither primarily sea-based nor inherently vessel related.” 

            While upholding the ALJ, the Board however pointed out that a claimant’s duties should not be segregated into steering/maintenance duties and loading/unloading duties.  The Board stated that it needed only to address whether the ALJ rationally relied upon the Ninth Circuit’s language to ascertain whether the claimant’s connection to the employer’s fleet was substantial.  In assessing whether the claimant’s duties were “sea-based” or “vessel-related,” the ALJ determined that the bulk of the claimant’s job required him to perform land-based loading, unloading, storing and disposing of items transported by the employer’s vessels.  The Board stated, “As this work is performed on land, the [ALJ] rationally concluded it was not ‘sea-based.’  Moreover, the [ALJ] found that claimant did not sleep on the vessels, was more often assigned to land jobs because of his skills, and did not get paid per vessel trip but was a regular hourly employee.  Thus, in ascertaining whether claimant’s connection to employer’s fleet was substantial in nature, it was rational for the [ALJ] to rely on Ninth Circuit language and to conclude that the connection was not substantial in nature.”

Topic  1.4       Jurisdiction--LHWCA v. Jones Act

Nunez v. B & B Dredging, Inc., 288 F.3d 271 (5th Cir. 2002)(rehearing denied May 21, 2002).

            Worker was not a "seaman" under the Jones Act, even though he was permanently assigned to a dredge, since he spent only approximately 10 percent of his work time aboard the dredge. The circuit court noted the Supreme Court's analysis in Chandris v. Latsis resolved this issue and quoted the Supreme Court :

"The Court stated a maritime worker who spends only a small fraction of his working time onboard a vessel is fundamentally land based and therefore not a member of the vessel's crew, regardless of what his duties are.' The Court stated further that generally, the Fifth Circuit seems to have identified an appropriate rule of thumb for the ordinary case: a worker who spends less than about 30 percent of his time in the service of a vessel in navigation should not qualify as a seaman under the Jones Act."

            The circuit court also said, "The fundamental purpose of this substantial connection requirement is to give full effect to the remedial scheme created by Congress and to separate the sea-based maritime employees who are entitled to Jones Act protection from those land-based workers who have only a transitory or sporadic connection to a vessel in navigation, and therefore whose employment does not regularly expose them to the perils of the sea."

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Topic   1.4.1   Jurisdiction/Coverage—LHWCA v. Jones Act—Generally

Radut v.State Street Bank & Trust Co., ___ F.Supp 2d ___ (03 Civ. 7663 (SAS))(S. D. N.Y. Nov. 4, 2004).

            Here the court found, as a matter of law, that a marine corrosion and coatings specialist retained as an independent contractor to perform a “steel and coating survey” on a vessel and who worked while the ship was at sea, was a “Sieracki seaman.”  This case has a good historical discussion of “Sieracki seaman” doctrine.

Topic   1.4.1   LHWCA v. Jones Act—Generally

Harkins v. Riverboat Services, Inc., ___ F.3d ___ (No. 03-3624)(7^th Cir. October 6, 2004).

            In a Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) case, the Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a suit for overtime/retaliatory discharge where the plaintiffs were not protected by the FLSA because they were considered seamen within the seaman’s exemption to the FLSA.

            The workers were part of the riverboat casino’s “marine crew” and were responsible for the operation of the ship and the ship’s passengers.  However, most of the plaintiffs were not directly involved in navigation or engine-room work and spent much of their time doing the kind of housekeeping chores that they would have done in a casino that was on land.  The riverboat in question spent at least 90 percent of its time moored to a pier and when it did cruise, only cruised for a maximum of four hours at a time.  Realistically, the lives of the workers differed only slightly from that of ordinary casino workers. 

            The FLSA exempts from its overtime provisions persons employed as seamen.  29 U.S.C. § 213(b)(6).  The plaintiffs argued that they were not seamen because they do not perform the distinctive work of seamen and “do not work on a real ship but on a kind of glorified houseboat.”  However, after examining the jurisprudential definition of “seaman” and noting the terse language of the statute (“any employee employed as a seaman”) under the FLSA, the court found that only two points emerged with any clarity from the cases:  the employee must perform maritime-type work on a ship that is within the admiralty jurisdiction; and decisions interpreting the term “seaman” in other statutes do not necessarily control meaning in the FLSA. 

            The court stated that “when persons employed on a ship, even so a typical a one as an Indiana gambling boat, are classified as seamen for purposes of entitlement to the special employment benefits to which seamen, including therefore these plaintiffs, are entitled, a presumption arises that they are seamen under the FLSA as well.”  [ED. NOTE:  However, had the plaintiffs filed seamen claims, they would not necessarily be entitled to seamen’s special benefits in some circuit courts.]

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act--Generally

Songui v. City of New York, 2003 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 13890 (Index No. 10780/99)(Dec. 22, 2003).

            This is a summary judgment order wherein the private contractor, Reynolds Shipyard Corporation, successfully argued that a Jones Act claim should be dismissed since the barge repairman was a land-based worker with only a transitory connection to a vessel in navigation and was hired on a temporary basis to weld a metal plate onto a garbage barge owned by the City of New York. The court found that the worker was more properly covered under the LHWCA. The City of New York also moved for summary judgment claiming that federal maritime law should preempt state labor law. In denying the city's motion, the court noted that the New York Court of Appeals has previously held that the LHWCA does not preempt New York labor law and that an action may proceed to determine if there is any fault on the part of the city.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act--Generally

[ED. NOTE:  This case is included for informational purposes only.]

Gros v. Settoon, Inc., 865 So. 3^rd 143 (La. App. 3 Cir Dec. 23, 2003), 2003 La. App. LEXIS 3602), cert denied to La. Supreme Court at 871 So. 3^rd 352 (March 26, 2004).

            In this jurisdictional (Jones Act versus LHWCA) case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals for the State of Louisiana made the extraordinary finding that, despite Fifth Circuit jurisprudence to the contrary; it would follow the Ninth Circuit and hold that a formal award of LHWCA benefits would not preclude the filing of a Jones Act claim. It found that Congress envisioned pursuing both LHWCA and Jones Act claims, despite the real possibility that an employer may be forced to engage in repetitious litigation.

            While this matter was before an ALJ, the employer argued that the worker was a shore based worker only entitled to Louisiana state workers compensation. The ALJ found that the worker's injury upon navigable waters was sufficient to qualify him for LHWCA benefits. The worker then alleged his status as a seaman making claims for negligence, unseaworthiness and maintenance and cure under the Jones Act and also filing a claim for vessel negligence under 905(b). [ED. NOTE: Using the Saving to Suitors clause of the U.S. Constitution, this matter was filed in state court rather than in federal district court where most similar cases are normally filed.]

            The Louisiana Third Circuit noted the competing federal circuit positions as well as the Fifth Circuit's limitation on Southwest Marine Inc. v. Gizoni, 502 U.S. 81 (1991) wherein a worker sought and received voluntarily paid benefits. However, the state circuit court stated, "We are satisfied, during the administrative hearing to determine [the worker's] entitlement to LHWCA benefits, seaman status was not at issue. The Louisiana Third Circuit also states that, "The Administrative Law Judge found [the worker's] injury upon navigable waters was sufficient to qualify him for benefits under the LHWCA."

            However, a reading of the ALJ's Decision and Order indicates that the issue of coverage was not glossed over. Gros v. Fred Settoon, Inc. (Unpublished) (Case No. 2000-LHC-2179)(April 9, 2001). The ALJ not only specifically listed "jurisdiction" as an issue, he specifically addressed both situs as well as status and found coverage under the LHWCA.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act--Generally

Southcombe v. A Mark, B Mark, C Mark Corp., 37 BRBS 169 (2003).

            In this status issue case, the Board upheld the ALJ's determination that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment pursuant to Section 2(3) of the LHWCA. The claimant had been employed by a subcontractor as an ironworker. The general contractor was constructing a marina on a river. The marina was to include an 80-foot high "mega yacht" service facility. At the time of the claimant's injury he was unloading steel beams from a flat-bed trailer which were intended for use as the frame of the yacht service facility. The Board first noted that the seminal issue in this matter was whether the claimant's work on the project was maritime employment which is a legal issue to which the Section 20(a) presumption does not attach.

            Next the Board noted that within the jurisdiction of the Fourth Circuit, within whose jurisdiction this case arises, the jurisprudence has drawn a distinction between workers engaged to repair or replace existing harbor or shipyard facilities and those engaged in the construction of new land-based facilities. The Board cited the lead Fourth Circuit case of Weyher/Livsey Constructors, Inc. v. Prevetire, 27 F.3d 985, 28 BRBS 57(CRT)(4th Cir. 1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1063 (1995)(Held, a pipe fitter employed to construct a power plant on the premises of the Norfolk Naval Shipyard was not a covered employee; court declined to expand coverage to include this worker merely because the power plant being built would eventually provide steam and electricity to shipbuilding and ship repair operations.).

            The Board noted that the ALJ found that 1) the claimant was on the premises solely to construct a building, and not to maintain or repair shipyard facilities; 2) pursuant to Prevetire, a finding of coverage cannot rest on the future use of the facility; and 3) the claimant's work was not integral to the loading, unloading, repair or building of vessels. The Board then affirmed the ALJ's finding that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment. In so doing, the Board distinguished the claimants in Stewart v. Brown & Root, Inc., 7 BRBS 356 (1978), aff'd sub nom. Brown & Root, Inc. v. Joyner, 607 F.2d 1087, 11 BRBS 86 (4th Cir. 1979), cert. denied, 446 U.S. 981 (1980) who had been engaged in the construction of a pier or dry dock or other "uniquely maritime" structure such that coverage could be conferred on this basis. The Board also specifically noted that in the instant case, the claimant's relationship to this facility was merely temporary as he was on the premises solely under a subcontract to build the facility.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act

Becker v. Tidewater, Inc., 335 F.3d 376 (5th Cir. June 19, 2003)(Rehearing en banc denied July 21, 2003).

            Here the Fifth Circuit overturned a federal district court jury's finding of Jones Act seaman status. After first addressing the differences between the Jones Act and the LHWCA, the Fifth Circuit addressed the issue at hand, namely, was the plaintiff's connection to the vessel substantial in duration and nature, and therefore warranting coverage under the Jones Act. It noted that in Chandris, Inc. v. Latsis, 515 U.S. 347 (1995)(Held, temporary workers are not seamen, although such workers may be treated as regular crew members by their peers.), the Supreme Court had evoked a status-based standard wherein the Court rejected a "voyage test. The Fifth Circuit noted that while it has quantified the duration of time necessary to allow submission of the issue of seaman status to a jury by using a 30 percent rule of thumb, the Supreme Court, in Chandris, articulated an exception to temporal guidelines such as the Fifth Circuit's 30 percent rule. The Chandris exception states that "[i]f a maritime employee receives a new work assignment in which his essential duties are changed, he is entitled to have the assessment of the substantiality of his vessel-related work made on the basis of his activities in his new position." Seaman status does not attach to a worker simply because he is necessary to the vessel's mission at the time of injury. Chandris, 515 U.S. at 358.

            Thus, a worker who, over the course of his employment, has worked in the service of a vessel in navigation well under 30 percent of his time may still qualify for seaman status if he has been reassigned to a new position ("substantial change in status") that meets this temporal requirement. In applying the facts of this particular case to the law, the Fifth Circuit found that the evidence was insufficient for a finder of fact to conclude that the plaintiff had proven his case.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act

Lorimer v. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., (Unpublished) (No. 01-70849) (June 3, 2002) (9th Cir. 2002).

            At issue here was whether the claimant was excluded from coverage under the LHWCA because he was a "seaman." The Board and the Ninth Circuit found that, although the claimant worked 12 hour shifts, came ashore to sleep, and had no seaman papers, he was nevertheless a seaman. The court noted that the claimant's duties as a deckhand included tying up barges alongside the dredge where he was stationed, taking depth readings, greasing the dredge's clamshell bucket, painting, cleaning, and other general maintenance, all of which contributed to the accomplishment of the vessel's mission of dredging in Los Angeles and Long Beach Harbors.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act

Soloman v. Blue Chip Casino, Inc., 772 N.E.2d 515, (2002 WL 1763935) (Ind. App. July 31, 2002).

            This is a consolidation of casino boat cases where the state court of appeals upheld the lower court's finding that the workers were not covered under the Jones Act. The court of appeals held that: (1) the casino boat was not located on "navigable" waters for purposes of the Jones Act; (2) the Coast Guard's exercise of authority over the boat did not mandate finding the waters were navigable for purposes of the Jones Act; and (3) a finding of being on navigable waters for purposes of the state gaming statute did not mean the boat was on "navigable waters" as that term is used in Jones Act jurisprudence.

            The casino boat in question was located at Michigan City, Indiana in a small man-made, rectangular area of water that was dug out of dry land connected to the Trail Creek (a navigable body of water) by a narrow and shallow opening. However, no commercial vessel can pass through this shallow opening that is 2.5 feet deep. The court first reviewed Jones Act jurisprudence to determine that the water on which the boat floated was not navigable for purposes of the commerce clause. The Daniel Ball, 10 Wall. 557, 77 U.S. 557 (1870); Reeves v. Mobile Dredging & Pumping Co., 26 F.3d 1247,(3d Cir. 1994)(A body of water is navigable "if it is one that, by itself or by uniting with other waterways, forms a continuous highway capable of sustaining interstate or foreign commerce."). Next the court noted that the term "navigability" has at least four definitions and that what is navigable for purposes of the Coast Guard, is not necessarily navigable for purposes of the commerce clause. Finally, the court noted that the state's definition of "navigable" is not co-extensive with the definition under admiralty jurisdiction or the Jones Act.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act–Generally

Uzdavines v. Weeks Marine, Inc., 37 BRBS 45 (2003).

            In determining whether the worker had status under the LHWCA or was covered under the Jones Act, the Board deferred to the ALJ’s rational, factual interpretation that a barge used to dredge navigational channels (either pulled by a tug or moving on spuds) was a “vessel in navigation.” Thus the worker was a member of the crew covered by the Jones Act.  In determining that the barge was a vessel, the ALJ had relied upon Bernard v. Binnings Constr. Co., Inc, 741 F.2d 824 (5th Cir. 1984) and Tonnesen v. Yonkers Contracting Co., Inc., 82 F.3d 30 (2d Cir. 1996).    In Bernard, the Fifth Circuit had considered three factors in determining whether a floating work platform is a vessel: 1) if the structure involved was constructed and used primarily as a work platform; 2) if the structure was moored or otherwise secured at the time of the accident; and 3) if the structure was capable of movement across navigable waters in the course of normal operations, was this transportation merely incidental to its primary purpose of serving as a work platform.  In Tonnesen, the Second Circuit applied the second and third Bernard factors but disagreed with regard to the first factor (focus on the original purpose for the structure).  Instead, the Second Circuit concluded that the inquiry should look to whether the structure was being used primarily as a work platform during a reasonable period of time immediately preceding the accident.

            The Board also noted the Tonnesen court’s conclusion that “[c]ourts considering the question of whether a particular structure is a ‘vessel in navigation’ typically find that the term is incapable of precise definition,” and that except in rare cases, only the trier of facts can determine its application in the circumstances of a particular case.

Topic  1.4.1    LHWCA v. Jones Act

Becker v. Tidewater, Inc., 335 F.3d 376 (5th Cir. June 19, 2003)(Rehearing en banc denied July 21, 2003).

            Here the Fifth Circuit overturned a federal district court jury’s finding of Jones Act seaman status.  After first addressing the differences between the Jones Act and the LHWCA, the Fifth Circuit addressed the issue at hand, namely, was the plaintiff’s connection to the vessel substantial in duration and nature, and therefore warranting coverage under the Jones Act.  It noted that in Chandris, Inc. v. Latsis, 515 U.S. 347 (1995)(Held, temporary workers are not seamen, although such workers may be treated as regular crew members by their peers.), the Supreme Court had evoked a status-based standard wherein the Court rejected a “voyage test.”  The Fifth Circuit noted that while it has quantified the duration of time necessary to allow submission of the issue of seaman status to a jury by using a 30 percent rule of thumb, the Supreme Court, in Chandris, articulated an exception to temporal guidelines such as the Fifth Circuit’s 30 percent rule.  The Chandris exception states that “[i]f a maritime employee receives a new work assignment in which his essential duties are changed, he is entitled to have the assessment of the substantiality of his vessel-related work made on the basis of his activities in his new position.” Seaman status does not attach to a worker simply because he is necessary to the vessel’s mission at the time of injury.  Chandris, 515 U.S. at 358.  

            Thus, a worker who, over the course of his employment, has worked in the service of a vessel in navigation well under 30 percent of his time may still qualify for seaman status if he has been reassigned to a new position (“substantial change in status”) that meets this temporal requirement. In applying the facts of this particular case to the law, the Fifth Circuit found that the evidence was insufficient for a finder of fact to conclude that the plaintiff had proven his case.

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Topic   1.4.2   Jurisdiction/Coverage—Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Radut v.State Street Bank & Trust Co., ___ F.Supp 2d ___ (03 Civ. 7663 (SAS))(S. D. N.Y. Nov. 4, 2004).

            Here the court found, as a matter of law, that a marine corrosion and coatings specialist retained as an independent contractor to perform a “steel and coating survey” on a vessel, and who worked while the ship was at sea, was a “Sieracki seaman.”  This case has a good historical discussion of “Sieracki seaman” doctrine.

Topic  1.4.2    Jurisdiction—Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Nicole v. Southstar Industrial Contractors,    _ F. Supp 2d    _ (Civ. Action No. 03-1432 Sec. A (2)) (E.D. La. April 29, 2004), 2004 WL 936848.

            The federal district court found that an injured worker who was land-based and had only a sporadic or transitory connection to a vessel was not entitled to Jones Act coverage. Here the worker (an electrician's helper on a barge) had been contracted out to a customer by his employer. While the worker was supposed to be contracted out for seven weeks of work on the barge, he was injured on the third day. There was no evidence as to the worker's past employment and any allegations as to future employment were found to be speculative: "[S]eaman status is Plaintiff's burden to prove and he has nothing other than speculation to offer as to what his next job assignment might be. But Plaintiff cannot rely upon mere future possibilities to create seaman status in the present."

Topic  1.4.2    Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Lacy v. Southern California Ship Services, 38 BRBS 160 (2004).

            Here the Board upheld the ALJ’s determination that there was substantial evidence to support a finding that the claimant was a longshoreman, rather than a seaman.  The claimant’s duties incorporated stereotypical tasks of both longshoremen and seamen.  He worked as a rigger and deckhand for the employer and was in the process of loading cargo from one of employer’s boats onto a ship anchored outside the breakwaters of the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor when a swinging pallet hit him and caused injury to his back.  The employer’s primary business is to provide water taxi and supply service to vessels at anchor in the harbor.

            While the claimant was called a “deckhand” he performed duties both on land and aboard vessels.  Claimant worked 35 percent of his work time on vessels and 65 percent on land.  The land time included time preparing cargo and vessels to be launched as well as disposal and clean up after docking.  When the claimant was assigned to a vessel, he and another deckhand would prepare the cargo nets and pallets for loading, including getting them from the storage area, using forklifts to load them onto the nets, and using a crane to load them onto the vessels.  The claimant would handle the dock lines upon leaving and returning to the dock, and he would ride in the vessel to deliver the supplies or passengers to the ship.  His main duty in transport was to be sure the supplies were secure, and he typically would have time to drink coffee during the ride.  Once the vessel arrived at the ship, he would assist in loading the supplies onto the ship, or help transfer passengers to/from the ship.

            The Board noted that the ALJ had correctly found that while the claimant met the first prong of the Chandris test (contributing to the function of the vessel and the accomplishment of its mission) he could not meet the second prong (a substantial connection to a vessel or fleet of vessels).  While recognizing that the claimant’s 35 percent of time spent on boats exceeded the 30 percent rule of thumb set forth by the Fifth Circuit, the ALJ had stated that time alone does not satisfy the inquiry.  Rather, the ALJ found that the connection must also be substantial in nature, and he found that the claimant’s on-board work was not “primarily sea-based” work.    The ALJ determined that the claimant’s “vessel-related” duties were “secondary and minor compared to his regular occupation as a loader and unloader” and that these longshore duties were “neither primarily sea-based nor inherently vessel related.” 

            While upholding the ALJ, the Board however pointed out that a claimant’s duties should not be segregated into steering/maintenance duties and loading/unloading duties.  The Board stated that it needed only to address whether the ALJ rationally relied upon the Ninth Circuit’s language to ascertain whether the claimant’s connection to the employer’s fleet was substantial.  In assessing whether the claimant’s duties were “sea-based” or “vessel-related,” the ALJ determined that the bulk of the claimant’s job required him to perform land-based loading, unloading, storing and disposing of items transported by the employer’s vessels.  The Board stated, “As this work is performed on land, the [ALJ] rationally concluded it was not “sea-based.  Moreover, the [ALJ] found that claimant did not sleep on the vessels, was more often assigned to land jobs because of his skills, and did not get paid per vessel trip but was a regular hourly employee.  Thus, in ascertaining whether claimant’s connection to employer’s fleet was substantial in nature, it was rational for the [ALJ] to rely on Ninth Circuit language and to conclude that the connection was not substantial in nature.”

Topic  1.4.2    Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Songui v. City of New York, 2003 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 13890 (Index No. 10780/99)(Dec. 22, 2003).

            This is a summary judgment order wherein the private contractor, Reynolds Shipyard Corporation, successfully argued that a Jones Act claim should be dismissed since the barge repairman was a land-based worker with only a transitory connection to a vessel in navigation and was hired on a temporary basis to weld a metal plate onto a garbage barge owned by the City of New York. The court found that the worker was more properly covered under the LHWCA. The City of New York also moved for summary judgment claiming that federal maritime law should preempt state labor law. In denying the city's motion, the court noted that the New York Court of Appeals has previously held that the LHWCA does not preempt New York labor law and that an action may proceed to determine if there is any fault on the part of the city.

Topic  1.4.2    Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Gros v. Settoon, Inc.,     So. 3rd     (03-461) (La. App. 3 Cir Dec. 23, 2003), 2003 La. App. LEXIS 3602).

            In this jurisdictional (Jones Act versus LHWCA) case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals for the State of Louisiana made the extraordinary finding that, despite Fifth Circuit jurisprudence to the contrary; it would follow the Ninth Circuit and hold that a formal award of LHWCA benefits would not preclude the filing of a Jones Act claim. It found that Congress envisioned pursuing both LHWCA and Jones Act claims, despite the real possibility that an employer may be forced to engage in repetitious litigation.

            While this matter was before an ALJ, the employer argued that the worker was a shore based worker only entitled to Louisiana state workers compensation. The ALJ found that the worker's injury upon navigable waters was sufficient to qualify him for LHWCA benefits. The worker then alleged his status as a seaman making claims for negligence, unseaworthiness and maintenance and cure under the Jones Act and also filing a claim for vessel negligence under 905(b). [ED. NOTE: Using the Saving to Suitors clause of the U.S. Constitution, this matter was filed in state court rather than in federal district court where most similar cases are normally filed.]

            The Louisiana Third Circuit noted the competing federal circuit positions as well as the Fifth Circuit's limitation on Southwest Marine Inc. v. Gizoni, 502 U.S. 81 (1991) wherein a worker sought and received voluntarily paid benefits. However, the state circuit court stated, "We are satisfied, during the administrative hearing to determine [the worker's] entitlement to LHWCA benefits, seaman status was not at issue. The Louisiana Third Circuit also states that, "The Administrative Law Judge found [the worker's] injury upon navigable waters was sufficient to qualify him for benefits under the LHWCA."

            However, a reading of the ALJ's Decision and Order indicates that the issue of coverage was not glossed over. Gros v. Fred Settoon, Inc. (Unpublished) (Case No. 2000-LHC-2179)(April 9, 2001). The ALJ not only specifically listed "jurisdiction" as an issue, he specifically addressed both situs as well as status and found coverage under the LHWCA.

Topic  1.4.2    Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Southcombe v. A Mark, B Mark, C Mark Corp., 37 BRBS 169 (2003).

            In this status issue case, the Board upheld the ALJ's determination that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment pursuant to Section 2(3) of the LHWCA. The claimant had been employed by a subcontractor as an ironworker. The general contractor was constructing a marina on a river. The marina was to include an 80-foot high "mega yacht" service facility. At the time of the claimant's injury he was unloading steel beams from a flat-bed trailer which were intended for use as the frame of the yacht service facility. The Board first noted that the seminal issue in this matter was whether the claimant's work on the project was maritime employment which is a legal issue to which the Section 20(a) presumption does not attach.

            Next the Board noted that within the jurisdiction of the Fourth Circuit, within whose jurisdiction this case arises, the jurisprudence has drawn a distinction between workers engaged to repair or replace existing harbor or shipyard facilities and those engaged in the construction of new land-based facilities. The Board cited the lead Fourth Circuit case of Weyher/Livsey Constructors, Inc. v. Prevetire, 27 F.3d 985, 28 BRBS 57(CRT)(4th Cir. 1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1063 (1995)(Held, a pipe fitter employed to construct a power plant on the premises of the Norfolk Naval Shipyard was not a covered employee; court declined to expand coverage to include this worker merely because the power plant being built would eventually provide steam and electricity to shipbuilding and ship repair operations.).

            The Board noted that the ALJ found that 1) the claimant was on the premises solely to construct a building, and not to maintain or repair shipyard facilities; 2) pursuant to Prevetire, a finding of coverage cannot rest on the future use of the facility; and 3) the claimant's work was not integral to the loading, unloading, repair or building of vessels. The Board then affirmed the ALJ's finding that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment. In so doing, the Board distinguished the claimants in Stewart v. Brown & Root, Inc., 7 BRBS 356 (1978), aff'd sub nom. Brown & Root, Inc. v. Joyner, 607 F.2d 1087, 11 BRBS 86 (4th Cir. 1979), cert. denied, 446 U.S. 981 (1980) who had been engaged in the construction of a pier or dry dock or other "uniquely maritime" structure such that coverage could be conferred on this basis. The Board also specifically noted that in the instant case, the claimant's relationship to this facility was merely temporary as he was on the premises solely under a subcontract to build the facility.

Topic  1.4.2    Master/member of the Crew (seaman)

Lorimer v. Great Lakes Dredge & Dock Co., (Unpublished) (No. 01-70849) (June 3, 2002) (9th Cir. 2002).

            At issue here was whether the claimant was excluded from coverage under the LHWCA because he was a "seaman." The Board and the Ninth Circuit found that, although the claimant worked 12 hour shifts, came ashore to sleep, and had no seaman papers, he was nevertheless a seaman. The court noted that the claimant's duties as a deckhand included tying up barges alongside the dredge where he was stationed, taking depth readings, greasing the dredge's clamshell bucket, painting, cleaning, and other general maintenance, all of which contributed to the accomplishment of the vessel's mission of dredging in Los Angeles and Long Beach Harbors.

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Topic  1.4.3.  Jurisdiction/Coverage—Vessel—“In Navigation”

Watson v. Indiana Gaming Co., (Unpublished)(No. 2003-24)(E.D. Kentucky September 21, 2004).

            In this summary judgment matter, the federal district court found that a card dealer on an indefinitely moored riverboat casino is not a Jones Act seaman since the vessel was not in navigation for Jones Act purposes.  The court reasoned that the permanently moored vessel no longer served a maritime purpose and no longer had any relationship to traditional maritime activity such as transporting cargo or people.

Topic  1.4.3    Jurisdiction/Coverage--Vessel

Anastasiou v. M/T World Trust, ___ F.Supp 2d ___ (02 CV 1917 (ILG))((E. Dist. NY Oct. 1, 2004).

            This is an Order Denying Motion for a Summary Judgment.  The plaintiff was the sole employee and owner of a company called Maritech Electronics.  He slipped and fell, breaking his leg on a ramp shortly after boarding a vessel on which he was supposed to conduct an annual radio safety survey.  The defendants allege entitlement to a Summary Judgment, arguing that the plaintiff is covered under the LHWCA and that his negligence claim does not on its face disclose any negligence on the part of the vessel.

                       The court found that the plaintiff satisfied both pre- and post-1972 LHWCA amendment tests for coverage.  The plaintiff had alleged that he did not fall under the protections of the LHWCA because his work in conducting the radio survey was not an “integral or essential part of loading or unloading a vessel.”  The court found that the plaintiff misread pertinent case law and that the Second Circuit has held that an individual satisfies the status test where he has “a significant relationship to navigation or to commerce on navigable waters.”  The court noted that the LHWCA “clearly divides maritime workers into two mutually exclusive categories: seamen, on the one hand, and longshoremen, harbor workers and all other employees entitled to protection under the Act, on the other hand.”  The court pointed out that in rare instances longshoremen and harbor worker type workers not covered by the LHWCA [“Sieracki seamen”] may avail themselves of the duty of seaworthiness.

            The court equally found that the plaintiff was not entitled to pursue an action under 905(b) since his claim on its face admitted that the vessel was built to American Bureau of Shipping standards.  His claim also failed to put forward any evidence that there was constructive knowledge by the owners of any danger associated with the ramp.  Finally, the court noted that in any event, the plaintiff failed to show that any negligence created a genuine issue of material fact since he did not show that the ship owner’s duty of care to an individual such as the plaintiff (an invitee on board to perform navigational related work) had been breached.

Topic  1.4.3    Jurisdiction/Coverage—LHWCA v. Jones Act—“Vessel”—“In Navigation”

Howard v. Southern Ill. Riverboat Casino Cruises Inc., ___ U.S. ___ (S.Ct. No. 04-51) (Cert. denied October 18, 2004).

            Let stand Seventh Circuit’s ruling that employees exposed to chemicals working on a moored riverboat casino on a navigable river were not “seamen” and therefore not entitled to bring Jones Act claims.  Riverboat casino indefinitely moored to a dock is not a vessel in navigation, although it is classified as a passenger vessel by the Coast Guard.  The circuit court, 364 F.3d 854 (7^th Cir. 2004)(rehearing and suggestion for rehearing en banc denied), had held that the purpose of the riverboat casino was “not to move or transport cargo or people, but merely to provide a legal venue under Illinois law for gambling.”

Topic  1.4.3    Jurisdiction/Coverage—"Vessel" 

Howard v. S. Illinois Riverboat Casino Cruises, Inc., 364 F.3d 854 (No. 02-3818, 02-3819)(7th Cir. April 9, 2004).

            The Seventh Circuit held that an indefinitely moored dockside casino with no transportation function or purpose is not a "vessel in navigation" and therefore the plaintiffs are not entitled to Jones Act status. The casino had been docked for over a year and was connected to land-based utilities, including electricity, telephone, water, and sewer. Nevertheless it could be disconnected from the dock in about 15 to 20 minutes and was licensed and classified as a passenger vessel with the U.S. Coast Guard. It employed a captain and crew qualified to move the casino if necessary.

            The court found that in order for a vessel to satisfy the navigation requirement of the Chandris test, the purpose of the vessel "must to some reasonable degree be the transportation of passengers, cargo, or equipment from place to place across navigable waters." The court further noted that while a factor to take into account is whether a ship is a vessel for state law gambling purposes, this factor does not govern the question of whether it is a vessel in navigation for purposes of the Jones Act. Citing to several cases, the court noted that courts will need to examine, among other factors, the current use of the vessel and the question "whether the owner intends to move the structure on a regular basis and the length of time the structure has remained stationary."

Topic  1.4.3    Jurisdiction—“Vessel”

Stewart v. Dutra Const. Co., ___ U.S. ___ , 124 S.Ct. 1414 (No. 03-814)  (Cert. granted Feb. 23, 2004).

            The U.S. Supreme Court will consider whether a dredge is a “vessel” under the Jones Act.  The dredge in question was used to dig a trench under Boston Harbor.  The First Circuit had held that it was not a vessel because it was not primarily used in navigation or commerce. 

Topic  1.4.3    Jurisdiction/Coverage—Vessel

Morganti v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 37 BRBS 126 (2003).

            In this coverage case, the Board upheld the ALJ's finding of situs/navigability of a lake; but reversed his findings that the worker did not have status, or was excluded under the clerical exclusion of the LHWCA. The decedent here had worked for an employer who manufactures sonar transducers for the United State Navy. He was a test engineer. As such, he worked 70 percent of his time on land, and 30 percent of his time testing the devices over water on a barge that had been moored for 20 years for that purpose. (Of the 30 percent of his time spent over water, 1 percent was spent on a 32 foot shuttle boat going between land and the moored barge.) While untying a boat line, the worker fell into the lake and drowned.

            The Board found that the ALJ correctly held that an economic viability test should not be applied when determining whether a waterway is navigable for purposes of the LHWCA. In doing so, the Board noted that the ALJ correctly applied the Second Circuit's "navigability in fact" test to determine if the waterway is presently used, or is presently capable of being used, as an interstate highway for commercial trade or travel in the customary modes of travel on water.

            As to the status issue, the ALJ had found that the worker's job was not maritime, that the moored barge was a fixed platform, that the worker was transiently over navigable water only 1 percent of his work time, and that even if the worker did have coverage, he was specifically excluded by the clerical worker exclusion of Section 2(3)(A). In reversing the ALJ, the Board made the following legal determinations.

            Citing to Director, OWCP v. Perini North River Associates, 459 U.S. 297, 15 BRBS 62(CRT) (1983), the Board stated that a claimant who is injured or dies on actual navigable waters while in the course of his employment on those waters is a maritime employee under Section 2(3) unless he is specifically excluded from coverage by another statutory provision. The Board found that the ALJ had incorrectly applied Bienvenu v. Texaco, Inc., 1964 F. 3d 901,32 BRBS 217(CRT)(5th Cir. 1999)(en banc)(Held that a worker injured upon navigable waters in the course of employment "meets the status test only if his presence on the water at the time of injury was neither transient nor fortuitous."). Finding that "it is clear that decedent's presence on navigable waters was neither transient nor fortuitous, the Board noted that it need not determine if Bienvenu should be followed in this Second Circuit case.

            In determining that the decedent was a maritime worker, the Board found that the ALJ was mistaken in relying upon case law construing a "vessel in navigation" under the Jones Act, when the issue presented was decedent's coverage under the LHWCA. While the Board acknowledged that under the Jones Act, the key to seaman status is an employment-related connection to a "vessel in navigation," the Board went on to state, "The courts have developed tests for determining whether a floating structure is a ‘vessel in navigation' or a work platform." According to the Board, "A structure may be a vessel for other purposes, yet it will not meet the Jones Act test unless it is ‘in navigation.' An employee injured on a floating structure which is not a ‘vessel in navigation' is thus not entitled to recover under the Jones Act but has his remedy under the Longshore Act as he is not excluded as a ‘member of the crew' under Section 2(3). As the test for distinguishing between a floating work platform and a vessel in navigation under the Jones Act is inapposite to the pertinent issue of coverage under Perini, the [ALJ] erred in relying on it." The Board summed, "As claimant was injured on a structure afloat on navigable waters, claimant was covered under the Act."

            The Board reversed the ALJ's finding that the decedent's presence on navigable waters at the time of his injury and death was transient since it found that the decedent worked over navigable water 30 percent of the time.

            While the Board noted that the decedent's employment responsibilities required him to input the data necessary for the computer to run the appropriate test and print results, it held that it was incorrect to characterize the work as clerical and data processing work. "The mere fact that an employee utilizes a computer in his job and inputs data does not convert a professional engineer utilizing computer skills into a clerical worker."

Topic  1.4.3    “Vessel”

Hertz v. Treasure Chest Casino, 274 F. Supp 2d 795 (E.D. La. 2003).

            Here the federal district court found that a river boat casino was no longer a vessel in navigation, but rather had become a work platform. The purpose of the vessel was for gambling and the state legislature had amended its gambling legislation to forbid the boat from sailing while gaming was in progress. The “captain” had been injured while removing carpeting from the deck of the vessel and sued under the Jones Act and the general maritime law. After finding that the boat was no longer a vessel, the court ruled out the possibility of a Jones Act recovery. As to the general maritime law, the court found that while he retained the title of captain, “he was a captain in name only. His vessel has been beached. He has no ‘captain duties’ while the Treasure Chest is being used as a gambling site, the purpose for which it was built and operated. What he was doing at the time of his injury-removing carpet-had no potentially disruptive impact on maritime commerce and has no substantial relationship to traditional maritime activity.” While the captain satisfied the locus aspect of the maritime law test, the court found that he did not satisfy the nexus aspect of the test, and, consequently, the matter was not within the admiralty jurisdiction of the court.

Topic  1.4.3    "Vessel"

Martinez v. Signature Seafoods Inc; Lucky Buck F/V, Official #567411, her machinery, appurtenances, equipment and cargo, in rem, 303 F.3d 1132 (9th Cir. 2002).

            The Ninth Circuit held that a seaworthy fish processing barge that is towed across navigable waters twice a year can qualify as a "vessel in navigation" for certain purposes of the Jones Act. This barge is a documented vessel with the United States Coast Guard and has no means of self-propulsion The Lucky Buck has a shaped raked bow, a flat main deck, a flat bottom, flat sides, a square raised stern, and is equipped with a bilge pump. It also has living quarters used by fish processors and administrators while it is moored in Alaska. Pursuant to coast Guard requirements for vessels, the Lucky Buck is equipped with navigational lights. Other that these lights, however, it has no navigational equipment––specifically, the Lucky Buck has no rudder, keel or propeller. Nor is it equipped with lift rafts. In Alaska, it is moored by four anchors and a cable affixed to shore. It floats 200 feet off shore and is accessible to land via a floating walkway. It receives water from a pipe connected to the shore.

            The court distinguished this case from Kathriner v. Unisea, 975 F.2d 657 (9th Cir. 1992) (Floating fish processing plant permanently anchored to a dock and which had not moved for 7 years and had a large opening cut into its hull to allow for dock traffic, was not a "vessel in navigation" since floating structures should not be classified as vessels in navigation if they are "incapable of independent movement over water, are permanently moored to land, have no transportation function of any kind, and have no ability to navigate.") The court noted that the Lucky Buck is actually sea-worthy and has a transportation function (carrying the fish processing plant, crew quarters, and incidental supplies between Seattle and Alaska twice each year. "Even if the transportation function of the Lucky Buck is incidental to its primary purpose of serving as a floating fish processing factory, that fact does not preclude a finding that it was a vessel in navigation." Additionally the court noted that the fact that it was designed to be transported among various fish processing sites raises a substantial factual issue about its status.

            The court refused to adopt a test established by the Fifth Circuit to determine whether a work platform qualifies as a vessel in navigation. See Bernard v. Binnings Constr. Co., 741 F.2d 824, 831 (5th Cir. 1984).

Topic  1.4.3    "Vessel”        

Haire v. Destiny Drilling (USA.) Inc., 36 BRBS 93 (2002), aff’g 35 BRBS 738 (ALJ)(2002).

            Board affirmed ALJ's finding that the marshy area upon which an air boat "got stuck" was not "navigable in fact." The ALJ noted that only air boats could navigate the area, and even such boats got stuck. (Claimant injured his back while attempting to free the air boat.) The Board noted that the ALJ, based on the limited evidence in the record, determined that only air boats could navigate the shallow bayou where claimant was injured and that the floating vegetation rendered the navigational capability of even such boats doubtful. The ALJ found that this hindrance to navigation was evident from the fact that the boats were equipped with lubricants to free the vessels from the vegetation.

            It should be noted that the Board stated, "Although the fact of navigational capability by air boats alone may, in a given case, render a waterway navigable in fact within the meaning of admiralty jurisdiction, the evidence in the instant case regarding the vegetation's impediment to navigation and the lack of any other evidence of navigable capability support the [ALJ's] finding that claimant was not injured on navigable waters pursuant to Section 3(a) of the Act.." Furthermore, it should be noted that the marsh was separated from the main waterway by a levee.

Topic  1.4.3    “Vessel”

[ED. NOTE: The following federal district court cases are included for informational purposes only.]

Ayers v. C&D General Contractors, 2002 WL 31761235, 237 F.Supp. 2d 764 (W.D. Ky. Dec. 6, 2002).

            Here the widow of a worker killed while removing supports from a dock settled the LHWCA claim but subsequently filed third party actions under the general maritime law and the Admiralty Extension Act. At issue in the third party action was whether "water craft exclusion" excluded this claim since the worker had been working underneath a barge. The court concluded that the claim should not be excluded since the barge was not used for transportation but merely aided the work under the dock.

Topic  1.4.3    “Vessel”

Uzdavines v. Weeks Marine, Inc., 37 BRBS 45 (2003).

            In determining whether the worker had status under the LHWCA or was covered under the Jones Act, the Board deferred to the ALJ’s rational, factual interpretation that a barge used to dredge navigational channels (either pulled by a tug or moving on spuds) was a “vessel in navigation.” Thus the worker was a member of the crew covered by the Jones Act.  In determining that the barge was a vessel, the ALJ had relied upon Bernard v. Binnings Constr. Co., Inc, 741 F.2d 824 (5th Cir. 1984) and Tonnesen v. Yonkers Contracting Co., Inc., 82 F.3d 30 (2d Cir. 1996).    In Bernard, the Fifth Circuit had considered three factors in determining whether a floating work platform is a vessel: 1) if the structure involved was constructed and used primarily as a work platform; 2) if the structure was moored or otherwise secured at the time of the accident; and 3) if the structure was capable of movement across navigable waters in the course of normal operations, was this transportation merely incidental to its primary purpose of serving as a work platform.  In Tonnesen, the Second Circuit applied the second and third Bernard factors but disagreed with regard to the first factor (focus on the original purpose for the structure).  Instead, the Second Circuit concluded that the inquiry should look to whether the structure was being used primarily as a work platform during a reasonable period of time immediately preceding the accident.

            The Board also noted the Tonnesen court’s conclusion that “[c]ourts considering the question of whether a particular structure is a ‘vessel in navigation’ typically find that the term is incapable of precise definition,” and that except in rare cases, only the trier of facts can determine its application in the circumstances of a particular case.

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Topic 1.4.3.1  Jurisdiction/Coverage—Vessel--Floating Dockside Casinos

Watson v. Indiana Gaming Co., (Unpublished)(No. 2003-24)(E.D. Kentucky September 21, 2004).

            In this summary judgment matter, the federal district court found that a card dealer on an indefinitely moored riverboat casino is not a Jones Act seaman since the vessel was not in navigation for Jones Act purposes.  The court reasoned that the permanently moored vessel no longer served a maritime purpose and no longer had any relationship to traditional maritime activity such as transporting cargo or people.

Topic  1.4.3.1  Jurisdiction/Coverage—LHWCA v. Jones Act—“Vessel”—Floating Dockside Casinos

Howard v. Southern Ill. Riverboat Casino Cruises Inc., ___ U.S. ___ (S.Ct. No. 04-51) (Cert. denied October 18, 2004).

            Let stand Seventh Circuit’s ruling that employees exposed to chemicals working on a moored riverboat casino on a navigable river were not “seamen” and therefore not entitled to bring Jones Act claims.  Riverboat casino indefinitely moored to a dock is not a vessel in navigation, although it is classified as a passenger vessel by the Coast Guard.  The circuit court, 364 F.3d 854 (7^th Cir. 2004)(rehearing and suggestion for rehearing en banc denied) had held that the purpose of the riverboat casino was “not to move or transport cargo or people, but merely to provide a legal venue under Illinois law for gambling.”

Topic  1.4.3.1 Floating Dockside Casinos Casino Law Journal Article

            For a thorough discussion of riverboat casino law, see "Riverboat Casinos and Admiralty and Maritime Law: Place Your Bets!," 28 Tul. Mar. L. Journ. 315 (Summer 2004).

Topic  1.4.3.1 Jurisdiction/Coverage—Floating Dockside Casinos

Bazor v. Boomtown Belle Casino, ___ U.S. ___, 124 S.Ct. 65 (Mem), 2003 WL 21180139 (Cert denied Oct. 6, 2003).

            As previously noted in the Digest and Supplement, in denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit had held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002). The Fifth Circuit had found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further had found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

Topic  1.4.3.1 Floating Dockside Casinos

Howard v. S. Illinois Riverboat Casino Cruises, Inc., 364 F.3d 854 (No. 02-3818, 02-3819)(7th Cir. April 9, 2004).

            The Seventh Circuit held that an indefinitely moored dockside casino with no transportation function or purpose is not a "vessel in navigation" and therefore the plaintiffs are not entitled to Jones Act status. The casino had been docked for over a year and was connected to land-based utilities, including electricity, telephone, water, and sewer. Nevertheless it could be disconnected from the dock in about 15 to 20 minutes and was licensed and classified as a passenger vessel with the U.S. Coast Guard. It employed a captain and crew qualified to move the casino if necessary.

            The court found that in order for a vessel to satisfy the navigation requirement of the Chandris test, the purpose of the vessel "must to some reasonable degree be the transportation of passengers, cargo, or equipment from place to place across navigable waters." The court further noted that while a factor to take into account is whether a ship is a vessel for state law gambling purposes, this factor does not govern the question of whether it is a vessel in navigation for purposes of the Jones Act. Citing to several cases, the court noted that courts will need to examine, among other factors, the current use of the vessel and the question "whether the owner intends to move the structure on a regular basis and the length of time the structure has remained stationary."

Topic  1.4.3.1 Floating Dockside Casinos

Scott v. Trump Indiana, Inc., 337 F.3d 939, (7th Cir. July 28, 2003).

            In this Admiralty Extension Act and LHWCA 905(b) case, the Seventh Circuit found that neither a land-based crane nor a life raft were “appurtenances” to a vessel. The circuit court further found that the director of safety training was not engaged in maritime employment” for purposes of the LHWCA. The director had been injured on a dock while observing a life raft being lowered onto the dock. His employer had contracted with Trump Indiana to design, install and maintain the lifesaving equipment required by the U.S. Coast Guard for the vessel “Trump Casino.”

Topic  1.4.3.1 Floating Dockside Casinos

Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300(5th Cir. 2002).

            In denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. The court found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

Topic  1.4.3.1 Floating Dockside Casinos

Soloman v. Blue Chip Casino, Inc., 772 N.E.2d 515, (2002 WL 1763935) (Ind. App. July 31, 2002).

            This is a consolidation of casino boat cases where the court of appeals court upheld the lower court's finding that the workers were not covered under the Jones Act. The court of appeals held that: (1) the casino boat was not located on "navigable" waters for purposes of the Jones Act; (2) the Coast Guard's exercise of authority over the boat did not mandate finding the waters were navigable for purposes of the Jones Act; and (3) a finding of being on navigable waters for purposes of the state gaming statute did not mean the boat was on "navigable waters" as that term is used in Jones Act jurisprudence.

            The casino boat in question was located at Michigan City, Indiana in a small man-made, rectangular area of water that was dug out of dry land connected to the Trail Creek (a navigable body of water) by a narrow and shallow opening. However, no commercial vessel can pass through this shallow opening that is 2.5 feet deep. The court first reviewed Jones Act jurisprudence to determine that the water on which the boat floated was not navigable for purposes of the commerce clause. The Daniel Ball, 10 Wall. 557, 77 U.S. 557 (1870); Reeves v. Mobile Dredging & Pumping Co., 26 F.3d 1247,(3rd Cir. 1994 (A body of water is navigable "if it is one that, by itself or by uniting with other waterways, forms a continuous highway capable of sustaining interstate or foreign commerce."). Next the court noted that the term "navigability" has at least four definitions and that what is navigable for purposes of the Coast Guard, is not necessarily navigable for purposes of the commerce clause. Finally, the court noted that the state's definition of "navigable" is not co-extensive with the definition under admiralty jurisdiction or the Jones Act.

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Topic  1.4.4    Jurisdiction—Attachment to Vessel

Nicole v. Southstar Industrial Contractors,   _  F. Supp 2d _    (Civ. Action No. 03-1432 Sec. A (2)) (E.D. La. April 29, 2004). 2004 WL 936848.

            The federal district court found that an injured worker who was land-based and had only a sporadic or transitory connection to a vessel was not entitled to Jones Act coverage. Here the worker (an electrician's helper on a barge) had been contracted out to a customer by his employer. While the worker was supposed to be contracted out for seven weeks of work on the barge, he was injured on the third day. There was no evidence as to the worker's past employment and any allegations as to future employment were found to be speculative: "[S]eaman status is Plaintiff's burden to prove and he has nothing other than speculation to offer as to what his next job assignment might be. But Plaintiff cannot rely upon mere future possibilities to create seaman status in the present."

Topic  1.4.4    Jurisdiction/Coverage—Attachment to Vessel

Morganti v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 37 BRBS 126 (2003).

            In this coverage case, the Board upheld the ALJ's finding of situs/navigability of a lake; but reversed his findings that the worker did not have status, or was excluded under the clerical exclusion of the LHWCA. The decedent here had worked for an employer who manufactures sonar transducers for the United State Navy. He was a test engineer. As such, he worked 70 percent of his time on land, and 30 percent of his time testing the devices over water on a barge that had been moored for 20 years for that purpose. (Of the 30 percent of his time spent over water, 1 percent was spent on a 32 foot shuttle boat going between land and the moored barge.) While untying a boat line, the worker fell into the lake and drowned.

            The Board found that the ALJ correctly held that an economic viability test should not be applied when determining whether a waterway is navigable for purposes of the LHWCA. In doing so, the Board noted that the ALJ correctly applied the Second Circuit's "navigability in fact" test to determine if the waterway is presently used, or is presently capable of being used, as an interstate highway for commercial trade or travel in the customary modes of travel on water.

            As to the status issue, the ALJ had found that the worker's job was not maritime, that the moored barge was a fixed platform, that the worker was transiently over navigable water only 1 percent of his work time, and that even if the worker did have coverage, he was specifically excluded by the clerical worker exclusion of Section 2(3)(A). In reversing the ALJ, the Board made the following legal determinations.

            Citing to Director, OWCP v. Perini North River Associates, 459 U.S. 297, 15 BRBS 62(CRT) (1983), the Board stated that a claimant who is injured or dies on actual navigable waters while in the course of his employment on those waters is a maritime employee under Section 2(3) unless he is specifically excluded from coverage by another statutory provision. The Board found that the ALJ had incorrectly applied Bienvenu v. Texaco, Inc., 1964 F. 3d 901,32 BRBS 217(CRT)(5th Cir. 1999)(en banc)(Held that a worker injured upon navigable waters in the course of employment "meets the status test only if his presence on the water at the time of injury was neither transient nor fortuitous."). Finding that "it is clear that decedent's presence on navigable waters was neither transient nor fortuitous, the Board noted that it need not determine if Bienvenu should be followed in this Second Circuit case.

            In determining that the decedent was a maritime worker, the Board found that the ALJ was mistaken in relying upon case law construing a "vessel in navigation" under the Jones Act, when the issue presented was decedent's coverage under the LHWCA. While the Board acknowledged that under the Jones Act, the key to seaman status is an employment-related connection to a "vessel in navigation," the Board went on to state, "The courts have developed tests for determining whether a floating structure is a ‘vessel in navigation' or a work platform." According to the Board, "A structure may be a vessel for other purposes, yet it will not meet the Jones Act test unless it is ‘in navigation.' An employee injured on a floating structure which is not a ‘vessel in navigation' is thus not entitled to recover under the Jones Act but has his remedy under the Longshore Act as he is not excluded as a ‘member of the crew' under Section 2(3). As the test for distinguishing between a floating work platform and a vessel in navigation under the Jones Act is inapposite to the pertinent issue of coverage under Perini, the [ALJ] erred in relying on it." The Board summed, "As claimant was injured on a structure afloat on navigable waters, claimant was covered under the Act."

            The Board reversed the ALJ's finding that the decedent's presence on navigable waters at the time of his injury and death was transient since it found that the decedent worked over navigable water 30 percent of the time.

            While the Board noted that the decedent's employment responsibilities required him to input the data necessary for the computer to run the appropriate test and print results, it held that it was incorrect to characterize the work as clerical and data processing work. "The mere fact that an employee utilizes a computer in his job and inputs data does not convert a professional engineer utilizing computer skills into a clerical worker."

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Topic  1.4.6    Jurisdiction/Coverage--LHWCA v. Jones Act—Jurisdictional Estoppel

Lewis v. SSA Gulf Terminals, Inc., (Unpublished) (BRB No. 03-0523)(April 22, 2004).

            When the claimant moved to stay the longshore proceeding until his Jones Act suit was complete, the Board found that the ALJ was within his authority to stay the LHWCA claim.  The Board noted that the ALJ had based his reasoning on the case law applicable in the Fifth Circuit.  Sharp v. Johnson Brothers Corp., 973 F.2d 423, 26 BRBS 59(CRT) (5^th Cir. 1992), cert. denied, 508 U.S. 907 (1993)(If a formal award under the LHWCA is issued after the ALJ makes findings of fact and conclusions of law, the claimant is precluded from pursuing a Jones Act suit, because he had the opportunity to litigate the coverage issue, even if it was not actually litigated.); contra, Figueroa v. Campbell Industries, 45 F.3d 311 (9^th Cir. 1995).  “As the [ALJ] provided a rational basis for canceling the hearing and holding the case in abeyance, and as employer has not demonstrated an abuse [of] the {ALJ]’s discretion in this regard, we affirm …the action.”  The Board however, did not affirm the ALJ’s decision to remand the case to the district director.  Rather, the ALJ must retain the case on his docket and award or deny benefits after a formal hearing is held.

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Topic  1.5.1    Jurisdiction/Coverage—Development of Jurisdiction/Coverage

Tsaropoulos v. The State of New York, 775 N.Y. S.2d 23, 9 A.D. 3d 1(April 13, 2004); 2004 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4074.

            The court in this Section 905 case notes the historical changes that affected third party recover from vessel owners after the 1972 amendments to the LHWCA. [ED. NOTE: After the 1972 amendments, workers covered under the LHWCA could only recover from vessel owners under a negligence standard; the "seaworthiness" standard—a much more liberal standard--had been replaced.]

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Topic  1.5.2    Jurisdiction—Development of Jurisdiction/Coverage—Navigable waters 

Thibodeaux v. Grasso Production Management Inc., 370 F.3d 486 (5th Cir. May 18, 2004).

            At issue here was whether a fixed oil production platform built on pilings over marsh and water and inaccessible from land constitutes either a "pier" or an "other adjoining area" within the meaning of Section 3(a) of the LHWCA. Distinguishing itself from both the Second Circuit and the Ninth Circuit in its analytical approach, the Fifth Circuit held that the platform in question was neither. The court held that the context of the statute indicates the enumerated sites should have some maritime purpose.

            Noting that the ALJ and Board had disagreed as to whether a portion of the platform was driven into dry land as opposed to marsh, the court stated that it adhered to a functional approach to defining "pier," thus making it unnecessary to decide whether the platform was in fact secured to dry land or marsh, "a determination that would likely change with the tide."

            Historically the Fifth Circuit has followed a functional approach when construing the parenthetically enumerated structures in Section 3(a). Jacksonville Shipyards, Inc. v. Perdue, 539 F.2d 533, 541 (5th Cir. 1976), vacated and remanded, Pfeiffer Co., Inc. v. Ford, 433 U.S. 904, 53 L.Ed. 2d 1088 (1977), reaffirmed, 575 F.2d 79 (5th Cir. 1978), cert. denied, 440 U.S. 967 (1979), overruled on other grounds, Texports Stevedoring Co. v. Winchester, 632 F.2d 504, 516 (5th Cir. 1980). "In Jacksonville Shipyards [sic], we required an employee to demonstrate that "a putative situs actually be used for loading, unloading, or one of the other functions specified in the Act. In this way, we interpreted the statute not to encompass all possible instances of the enumerated structures, but rather only those with some relation to the purpose of the LHWCA—providing compensation for maritime workers injured in areas used for maritime work. Under the reasoning of Jacksonville Shipyards [sic], while a structure built on pilings and straddling both land and water may bear some physical resemblance to a pier, it it does not serve a maritime purpose, it is not a pier within the meaning of § 903(a)."  The Fifth Cicuit noted that its position has been criticized in Hurston v. Dir., OWCP, 989 F.2d 1547 (9th Cir. 1993), and Fleischmann v. Dir., OWCP, 137 F.3d 131 (2d Cir. 1998).

            In the instant case the claimant was a pumper/gauger injured on a fixed oil production platform in the territorial waters of Louisiana. As part of his duties, the claimant monitored gauges both on the platform and on nearby wells, reaching the wells by using a 17-foot skiff. He also piloted a 24-foot vessel used to transport employees to the platform along with their personal supplies and, on occasion, equipment used for production. The platform where he spent the majority of his working hours rests on wooden pilings driven into a small bank next to a canal; the platform extends over marsh and water, but is accessible only by vessel and has a docking area. In order to inspect a discharge line which was leaking oil under the deck of the platform, the claimant lowered himself to a small wooden platform below the deck and the wood gave way.

Topic  1.5.2    Jurisdiction/Coverage—Navigable Waters

Desoto v. Pride International, Inc., (Unpublished) (No. Civ. A 03-1868)(E.D. La. March 3, 2004).

            Here a Motion for Summary Judgment was granted to the defendants because the claimant was injured on a fixed platform located within the territorial waters of Mexico, within the Gulf of Mexico. The plaintiff was injured by a falling crate while employed as a crane operator and motorman mechanic aboard a drilling rig. The plaintiff alleged federal question jurisdiction and in an amended complaint relied upon the general maritime law of the United States ("GML") and the OCSLA. The fact that the accident occurred on a fixed platform in Mexican territorial waters was uncontested. Since the Fifth Circuit has previously held that an injury on a fixed platform does not fall within the admiralty and maritime jurisdiction, the district court found that the GML does not support federal question jurisdiction. The court further found that the OCSLA was inapplicable since the OCSLA provides that "the soil and seabed of the outer continental Shelf appertain to the United States and are subject to its jurisdiction, control, and power of disposition." Thus, the claim was outside the scope of the OSCLA. (Cf. Weber v. S.C.Loveland Co. (Weber II), 35 BRBS 75 (2001)(Claimant injured in the port of Kingston, Jamaica, while walking on employer's catwalk on barge, was covered under the LHWCA.)

Topic  1.5.2    Development of Jurisdiction/Coverage--Navigable Waters

United States of America v. Angell, 292 F.3d 333 (2d Cir. 2002).

            This non-LHWCA case addresses the issue of navigability. Here the Army Corps of Engineers upheld an injunction issued in federal district court requiring the defendant to remove floats attached to his pier in a tidal canal. The court found that the defendant had violated the Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act. 33 U.S.C. § 403 (2000). The circuit court noted that Army Corps regulations define "navigable waters" as "those waters that are subject to the ebb and flow of the tide and/or are presently used, or have been used in the past, or may be susceptible for use to transport interstate or foreign commerce." 33 C.F.R. §§ 329.4 (2001).

Topic  1.5.2    Navigable Waters

Soloman v. Blue Chip Casino, Inc., 772 N.E.2d 515, (2002 WL 1763935) (Ind. App. July 31, 2002).

            This is a consolidation of casino boat cases where the court of appeals court upheld the lower court's finding that the workers were not covered under the Jones Act. The court of appeals held that: (1) the casino boat was not located on "navigable" waters for purposes of the Jones Act; (2) the Coast Guard's exercise of authority over the boat did not mandate finding the waters were navigable for purposes of the Jones Act; and (3) a finding of being on navigable waters for purposes of the state gaming statute did not mean the boat was on "navigable waters" as that term is used in Jones Act jurisprudence.

            The casino boat in question was located at Michigan City, Indiana in a small man-made, rectangular area of water that was dug out of dry land connected to the Trail Creek (a navigable body of water) by a narrow and shallow opening. However, no commercial vessel can pass through this shallow opening that is 2.5 feet deep. The court first reviewed Jones Act jurisprudence to determine that the water on which the boat floated was not navigable for purposes of the commerce clause. The Daniel Ball, 10 Wall. 557, 77 U.S. 557 (1870); Reeves v. Mobile Dredging & Pumping Co., 26 F.r 1247,(3rd Cir. 1994(A body of water is navigable "if it is one that, by itself or by uniting with other waterways, forms a continuous highway capable of sustaining interstate or foreign commerce."). Next the court noted that the term "navigability" has at least four definitions and that what is navigable for purposes of the Coast Guard, is not necessarily navigable for purposes of the commerce clause. Finally, the court noted that the state's definition of "navigable" is not co-extensive with the definition under admiralty jurisdiction or the Jones Act.

Topic  1.5.2    "Navigable Water”

Weber v. S.C. Loveland Co. (Weber III), 35 BRBS 190 (2002).

            Previously in Weber I, 28 BRBS 321 (1994), and Weber II, 35 BRBS 75 (2001), the Board held that a worker (with status) injured in the Port of Kingston, Jamaica, had situs and therefore, was covered by the LHWCA. The now-insolvent employer had two insurance policies with different carriers. One policy insured the employer for LHWCA coverage within the U.S. and the other policy insured the employer in foreign territories, but did not include an LHWCA endorsement. Besides the issue of jurisdiction, at issue previously had been which of the two, if any, insurers was on the risk for longshore benefits at the time of the claimant's injury and is therefore liable for benefits.

            Of significance in Weber III are: (1) the issues of scope of authority to decide carrier issues and (2) whether the employer is entitled to Section 8(f) relief.

            In finding that it had authority to decide the matter, the Board distinguished Weber III from Temporary Employment Services, Inc. v. Trinity Marine Group, Inc. (TESI), 261 F.3d 456, 35 BRBS 92 (CRT) (5th Cir. 2001) (Contractual disputes between and among insurance carriers and employers which do not involve the claimant's entitlement to benefits or which party is responsible for paying those benefits, are beyond the scope of authority of the ALJ and the Board.). The Board noted that Weber III does not involve indemnification agreements among employers and carriers, but presents a traditional issue of which of the employer's carriers is liable.

            The Board also found that the employer was not in violation of Section 32 (failure to secure LHWCA insurance coverage) and thus could assert a Section 8(f) claim. The Director had argued that the employer was not entitled to Section 8(f) relief because the employer did not have longshore coverage in Jamaica. The Director cited the Board's decision in Lewis v. Sunnen Crane Services, Inc., 34 BRBS 57, 61 (2000), in which the Section 8(f)(2)(A) bar was applied to prevent an employer from obtaining Section 8(f) relief due to its non-compliance with Section 32, and argued that Lewis is dispositive of this issue.

            Employer disagreed and countered that it had sufficient coverage for all work-related injuries as of the date of the claimant's injury, because, as of that date, injuries which occurred in foreign territorial waters had not been held covered under the LHWCA. Accordingly, the employer argued that it complied with Section 32. The Board found that Lewis was distinguishable from Weber III and therefore, does not control. The Board found that in Weber III, the employer purchased insurance appropriate for covering the claimant's injuries under the statute and case law existing at that time. It was not until the Board's decision in Weber I that an injury in the Port of Kingston was explicitly held to be compensable under the LHWCA. In Weber I, the Board's holding rested on cases holding that "navigable waters of the United States" could include the "high seas." Thus, the Board held that Section 8(f)(2)(A) is not applicable to the facts of this case and does not bar the employer's entitlement to Section 8(f) relief.

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Topic  1.6       Jurisdiction--Situs

Morrissey v. Kiewit-Atkinson-Kenny, 36 BRBS 5 (2002).

            In this jurisdiction case, the claimant argued that he had jurisdiction under the LHWCA either by way of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA), the Defense Base Act (DBA), or the LHWCA itself. The Board upheld the ALJ's denial of jurisdiction in this matter. The claimant worked on a major construction project known as the Harbor Clean-up Project undertaken by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority to build a new sewage treatment plant and a discharge, or outfall, tunnel to serve the Boston metropolitan area. The outfall tunnel is located 400 feet beneath the ocean floor and is to extend over nine miles from Deer Island into the Atlantic Ocean. The claimant worked as a member of a "bull gang," and his duties included maintenance of the rail system, water systems and the tunnel boring machine. He also was required to shovel muck, a substance he described as a cement-like mixture of wet dirt and debris, and assisted with the changing of heads or blades on the tunnel boring machine. When injured, the claimant was working in the outfall tunnel approximately five miles from Deer Island.

            The ALJ found that the claimant's work site was located in bedrock hundreds of feet below any navigable water and thus could not be viewed as being "upon the navigable waters of the United States." Additionally the ALJ found that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment as his work had no connection to loading and unloading ships, transportation of cargo, repairing or building maritime equipment or the repair, alteration or maintenance of harbor facilities. Further, the ALJ found that the tunnel where the injury occurred was not an enumerated situs and was not used for any maritime activities. The ALJ also rejected claims for coverage under the OCSLA and DBA.

            The Board first rejected coverage under the OCSLA noting that claimant's contentions on appeal pertain to the geographic location of the injury site (more than 3 miles offshore under the seabed), and erroneously disregard the statutory requirement that the claimant's injury must result from explorative and extractive operations involving natural resources.

            Next, the Board rejected coverage under the DBA. The claimant had contended that the oversight provided by the United States District Court to the project is sufficient to bring the claim under the jurisdiction of the DBA. However, the DBA provides benefits under the LHWCA for those workers injured while engaged in employment under contracts with the United States, or an agency thereof, for public work to be performed outside of the continental United States. The Board stated that the ALJ properly found that the DBA does not extend coverage for work on projects that must meet federal specifications, guidelines and statutes, but rather requires that the United States or an agency thereof be a party to the contract.

            Finally the Board rejected coverage directly under the LHWCA. The rock where the tunnel was being drilled rose above the surface of the water at the point where the claimant was injured. The bedrock was at all times dry ground, and there is no assertion that the tunnel itself was used in interstate commerce as a waterway. Thus, the Board found that the injury did not occur on navigable water. As to the claimant's contention that he was injured on a "marine railway," the Board rejected this allegation after examining the definition of "marine railway" and noting that the claimant did not contend that the railway used in the tunnel played any part in removing ships from the water for repair.

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Topic  1.6.1    Jurisdiction–Situs–“Over Water”

Ezell v. Direct Labor Inc., 37 BRBS 11 (2003).

            In this status issue case, the Board held that a claimant’s travel by boat to and from his work sites on 53 percent of his days prior to his injury is sufficient to establish that his presence on navigable waters was not transient or fortuitous.

            Here, the claimant, by virtue of his employment, was transported by boat for 18 of the 34 days (53 percent) he worked pre-injury and performed more than eight percent of his total work from barges located on navigable water. Most of his work was performed on a fixed platform replacing creosote boards and in pipe threading. The claimant was required to regularly travel by boat, 45 minutes each way, to specific jobs assignments during the course of his day and as part of his overall work.  The claimant maintained that the Fifth Circuit in Bienvenu v. Texaco, 164 F.3d 901, 32 BRBS 217(CRT) (5th Cir. 1999)(en banc), did not intend to exclude from coverage a worker, like himself, who was routinely transported to a work site over water and was injured during such transport.

            In reaching its holding the Board distinguished this case from Brockington v. Certified Electric, Inc., 903 F.2d 1523 (11th Cir. 1990), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 1026 (1991), where that claimant was using water transportation to commute to his job.  In contrast, the claimant in the instant case was already at work when required by his employer to travel by water to his work assignment.  He was given this assignment on a regular basis, and thus his presence on the water was not merely incidental to his employment.  Rather, claimant’s presence on the boat involved a significant portion of his day and was a necessary part of his overall employment.  Unlike Brockington, claimant was not merely commuting to work.  In addressing Bienvenu, the Board relied on its opinion in Ezell v. Direct Labor Inc., 33 BRBS 19 (1999)(“While Bienvenu rules out coverage for employees who are transiently and fortuitously on navigable water at the time of injury, it does not hold that a worker injured on navigable water during the course of his employment should be denied coverage under the Act if he is regularly required by his employment to travel by boat over navigable water, as well as where he performs some work on a vessel.”).

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Topic  1.6.2    Jurisdiction/coverage—Situs—“Over land”

Tarver v. BO-MAC Contractors, Inc., ___ F.3d ___ (No. 03-61028)(5^th Cir. September 21, 2004).

            Situs was found to be absent where two barge slips were being built on vacant dry land near the intracoastal waterway.  The slips had been dug but the holes were separated from the waterway by a dirt wall.  The claimant was seriously injured during the construction project while working on the land side of the excavation when an 80-foot beam came loose and pinned him to construction scaffolding.  Finding that there was no jurisdiction, the Fifth Circuit reiterated its position that “Whether an adjoining area is a § 903(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury.”  The court also noted its exception to this general rule (where a construction site—although not serving a maritime purpose—was carved out of a covered situs and promised to support navigation in the future, there would be a finding of situs), but found that in the instant case there was not a covered situs as the area had not yet been used for a maritime purpose.

Topic  1.6.2    Situs—“Over land”

Bazor v. Boomtown Belle Casino, ___ U.S. ___, 124 S.Ct. 65 (Mem), 2003 WL 21180139 (Cert denied Oct. 6, 2003). 

            As previously noted in the Digest and Supplement, in denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit had held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002). The Fifth Circuit had found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further had found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

Topic  1.6.2    Situs–"Over land"

Cunningham v. Bath Iron Works Corp., 37 BRBS 76 (2003).

            At issue here was whether there was situs at an "adjoining area" since the injury here occurred at a pipe prefabrication site away from the main shipyard. This case takes place within the jurisdiction of the First Circuit. The Board noted that, thus far, the First Circuit has not considered the situs issue where the place of injury was on a facility which was not immediately adjacent to navigable water. Before the Board analyzed the fact situation of Cunningham in relation to three bodies of water, it noted:

Thus far, the First Circuit has not considered the situs issue where the place of injury was on a facility which was not immediately adjacent to navigable waters. In its insistence, however, that an adjoining area is one which adjoins ‘navigable waters.' not a loading area...,'‘ Prolerized New England Co., 637 F. 2d at 38, 12 BRBS at 818, the First Circuit's approach to the situs issue appears to be consistent with that of the Fourth Circuit in Sidwell v. Director, OWCP, 71 F.3d 1134, 1138-39, 29 BRBS 138, 143(CRT) (4th Cir. 1995), cert. denied, 518 U.S. 1028 (1996), which held; "that an area is ‘adjoining' navigable waters only if it ‘adjoins' navigable waters...."

Although the First and Fourth Circuits agree that a covered situs necessarily entails adjoining navigable waters, one cannot reasonably project from the First Circuit statements that it would adopt the Fourth Circuit's test for situs set forth in Sidwell.

            The Board then noted that in the First Circuit, the Board has consistently applied the Ninth Circuit's standard set forth in Brady-Hamilton Stevedore Co. v. Herron, 568 F.2d 137, 7 BRBS 409 (9th Cir. 1978). The Board then found that one body of water did not meet neither the Ninth nor Fifth Circuit's test. As to the second body of water, the Board found it was not navigable since it lacked an "interstate nexus" which allows the body of water to function as a continuous highway for commerce between ports. Accordingly, the Board once again rejected the commerce clause definition of navigability.

            As to the third body of water, the Board relied on the Herron test again and found that there was no functional relationship; the pipe prefabrication was not, and need not be, done on the water or on a maritime site.

            As to the relationship of the pipe pre-fabrication site's relationship with the main shipyard, the Board held as a matter of law that the pre-fab site was not an "adjoining area" solely by its function; rather, as discussed above, the test involved both a functional use and geographic proximity to navigable water." (Later, the Board noted that both the geographical and functional nexus must be with the same body of water.) Although, the prefab area may have been built as close as feasible to the main shipyard, that factor alone, is insufficient to mandate the conclusion that the unit qualifies as an adjoining area.

Topic  1.6.2    Situs–"Over land"

Maraney v. Consolidation Coal Co., 37 BRBS 97 (2003).

            This is a situs/status issue case. At the time of the claimant's injury, he was working in his classified job as a mobile equipment operator assigned to "make the footprint" for phase two of an upstream construction project to prepare the site to serve as a coal impoundment, or depository for coal slurry. The Board held that Pond 4 [where he was working at the time of injury] was separate and apart from the employer's unloading/loading area, was not used for a maritime purpose and was not "an adjoining area," under Section 3(a). Having found no situs, the board did not address the status issue.

   The claimant had argued that he met the situs requirement in that the employer's facility was "an adjoining area" as defined by the Fifth Circuit in Texports Stevedore Co. v. Winchester, 632 F.2d 504, 12 BRBS 719 (5th Cir. 1980) (en banc), cert. denied, 452 U.S. 905 (1981).

            In denying situs, the Board noted that Pond No. 4 was functionally and geographically separate from the employer's unloading/loading operations, and that Pond No. 4 was not used for any maritime purpose. The pond functioned solely as the final resting point for the employer's coal refuse and did not store products destined for vessels. It was merely a repository for slate and slurry, which are byproducts of the cleaning process of coal. In essence, Pond No. 4 represented the tail end of the employer's coal preparation process and thus had no functional relationship with the navigable water where the employer's unloading/loading operations occurred. From a geographic standpoint, Pond 4 was distinct from the employer's unloading/loading area. It was separated from the processing plant by about .8 miles, was buffered by some woods, and was connected to the unloading/loading area only by a road.

Topic  1.6.2    Situs--"Over land"

Sowers v. Metro Machine Corp., 35 BRBS 181(2002) (en banc) upholding 35 BRBS 154 (2001).

            In this en banc situs issue case the Board upheld its original panel opinion affirming the ALJ's finding that the claimant was not injured on a covered situs. The claimant was injured at one of the employer's two facilities adjacent to navigable water. The claimant was injured at the Mid-Atlantic facility used for prefabricating steel components and painting items for Navy ships that are under repair at the employer's other facility, the Imperial Docks, where there are wet and dry docks. Ninety-five percent of the items sent to Mid-Atlantic for repair, or returned to the main shipyard after completion, are sent over land by truck. The remaining five percent are too large or too heavy to be trucked and are sent by barge.

            The ALJ found that the Mid-Atlantic facility was not a covered situs pursuant to Jonathan Corp. v. Brickhouse, 142 F.3d 217, 32 BRBS 86 (CRT) (4th Cir. 1998), cert. denied, 525 U.S. 1040 (1998). The ALJ noted that the claimant was engaged in fabrication of ship components that had to be shipped elsewhere before they were installed on the vessels and that the workers at the Mid-Atlantic facility did not engage in ship repair at the water's edge, and thus the work could be done at any site. The fact that the large components occasionally had to be shipped by barge was deemed insufficient to cover the site under the LHWCA, as this was not the customary method of transportation.

            The Board, first in a panel opinion, and now en banc, held that the ALJ properly applied Brickhouse. Although the employer's facility was contiguous with navigable waters, and thus had a geographic nexus to navigable waters, the facility did not have the functional nexus with navigable waters required by the Fourth Circuit's Brickhouse decision. The Board noted that this facility was used to fabricate vessel components for ships undergoing repair at the employer's other facility, but this activity did not require more than the rare use of the navigable river.

Topic  1.6.2    Situs–“Over land”

Charles v. Universal Ogden Services, 37 BRBS 37 (2003).

            Whether a warehouse could be considered an “adjoining area” was the primary issue in this situs determination case.  Here a claimant would load boxes of groceries onto a truck at his employer’s warehouse adjacent to the Mississippi river in Harahan, Louisiana, then truck the groceries to the Mississippi Gulf Coast some 70 miles away where he would then unload the boxes into containers so that they could be taken to offshore locations.  While on the Gulf Coast, he would empty containers of “spoiled” groceries, from containers, back onto his truck and drive the 70 miles back to his employer’s warehouse location.    While unloading the returns at his employer’s warehouse, the claimant injured his back.   In denying coverage, the Board found that there was no coverage since the claimant lacked “situs.”  The Board found that the employer’s warehouse was not an “adjoining area” since its location had no functional relationship to the Mississippi River and was too far away from the Gulf Coast docks to be considered part of that general area. “The facility functioned as a warehouse from which trucks, not vessels, were loaded.  Although near navigable waters, neither employer’s business nor surrounding properties had facilities on the water for loading, unloading, building or repairing vessels.”  In reaching its decision, the Board cited both Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300, 36 BRBS 79(CRT) (5th Cir. 2002)(Whether a site is an “adjoining area” is determined not only by geographic proximity to navigable waters, but also by the nature of the work performed there at the time of the injury.) and Bennett v. Matson Terminals, Inc., 14 BRBS 526 (1981), aff’d sub nom. Motoviloff v. Director, OWCP, 692 F.2d 87 (9th Cir. 1982) (Facility  was not a covered situs as it was not particularly suited to maritime uses, the site was not as close as feasible to employer’s terminal and it was chosen on the basis of economic factors considered by businesses generally.).

Topic  1.6.2    Situs––“Over land”

Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002).

            In denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. The court found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

Topic  1.6.2    Situs––“Over land”

Bianco v. Georgia Pacific Corp., 304 F.3d 1053 (11th Cir. 2002).

            The Eleventh Circuit found that a worker in a sheetrock production plant did not have situs under the LHWCA. "Even if GPC's sheet-rock production plant ‘adjoins’ navigable waters, it is not an ‘area customarily used by an employer in loading, unloading, repairing, dismantling or building a vessel.'" The area was used solely to manufacture sheetrock. Simply because maritime activity occurred in other areas of the GPC facility (namely where raw gypsum was unloaded from vessels), the entire GPC facility did not become an "area customarily used...." The court reasoned: "Indeed, were we to conclude that GPC's entire facility (irrespective of what GPC does at different areas therein) is an ‘‘adjoining area' simply because certain areas of the GPC facility engage in maritime activity, we would effectively be writing out of the statue the requirement that the adjoining area ‘‘be customarily used by an employer in loading, unloading, repairing, dismantling, or building a vessel."

Topic  1.6.2    Situs–“Over land”

Dickerson v. Mississippi Phosphates Corp., 37 BRBS 58 (2003).

            In this case involving situs and status, the claimant fell off of a ladder while welding in employer’s phosphoric acid plant located about 100 feet from the water’s edge.  Employer’s chemical plant manufactures fertilizer and is on a navigable waterway.    The plant takes in phosphoric rock by vessel, converts it into sulfuric acid and then phosphoric acid, and the phosphoric acid is made into a fertilizer.  The fertilizer leaves the plant by rail, truck or barge.  The claimant described his job as requiring him to weld pipe and operate forklifts, cherry pickers, and front end loaders.  His supervisor stated that the claimant’s work required him to perform a lot of steel fabrication work, some expansion work in the plant, some pipefitting, and foundation work for machinery.  The claimant conceded that he never loaded or unloaded vessels, and did not maintain or repair any equipment used in the loading or unloading of a vessel.  For two weeks during his employment, the claimant did remove wood pilings from the water’s edge.

            The Board affirmed the ALJ’s finding that the piling removal work was not covered employment as there was no evidence establishing that the removing of the pilings from the water’s edge was related to the loading, unloading, building, or repairing of a vessel, or to building or repairing a harbor facility used for such activity.  Moreover, the Board found that this case was distinguishable from other cases involving “covered” employees working in loading operations at fertilizer plants, as the claimant’s work herein was not integral to the loading and unloading. Thus, the Board upheld the ALJ’s determination that the claimant was not an employee covered under the LHWCA.

            Turning to situs, the Board determined that the ALJ had correctly found that there was not a covered situs.  The Board noted that for coverage, one must look to the nature of the place of work at the moment of injury and that to be considered a covered situs, a landward site must be either one of the sites specifically enumerated in Section 3(a) or an adjoining area customarily used by an employer in loading, unloading, repairing, dismantling or building a vessel.  The Board noted that an “adjoining area” must therefore have a maritime use.  It upheld the ALJ’s determination that this phosphoric acid plant was solely used in the fertilizer manufacturing process and had no relation to any customary maritime activity.  The Board further rejected the claimant’s contention that his injury occurred on a covered situs merely because employer’s entire facility abuts navigable waters and has a dock area on the property.  The Board noted prior case law distinguishing a plant from its docks when a worker worked solely in the plant.

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Topic  1.7       Status

Bazor v. Boomtown Belle Casino, ___ U.S. ___, S.Ct. ___ (Mem), 2003 WL 21180139 (Cert.  denied Oct. 6, 2003).  [See next entry.]

            As previously noted in the Digest and Supplement, in denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit had held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002). The Fifth Circuit had found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further had found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

Topic  1.7       Status

Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002). [See above.]

            In denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. The court found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

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Topic  1.7.1  Status—“Maritime worker” (Maritime Employment)

Anastasiou v. M/T World Trust, ___ F.Supp 2d ___ (02 CV 1917 (ILG))((E. Dist. NY Oct. 1, 2004).

            This is an Order Denying A Motion for a Summary Judgment.  The plaintiff was the sole employee and owner of a company called Maritech Electronics.  He slipped and fell, breaking his leg on a ramp shortly after boarding a vessel on which he was supposed to conduct an annual radio safety survey.  The defendants allege entitlement to a Summary Judgment, arguing that the plaintiff is covered under the LHWCA and that his negligence claim does not on its face disclose any negligence on the part of the vessel.

                       The court found that the plaintiff satisfied both pre- and post-1972 LHWCA amendment tests for coverage.  The plaintiff had alleged that he did not fall under the protections of the LHWCA because his work in conducting the radio survey was not an “integral or essential part of loading or unloading a vessel.”  The court found that the plaintiff misread pertinent case law and that the Second Circuit has held that an individual satisfies the status test where he has “a significant relationship to navigation or to commerce on navigable waters.”  The court noted that the LHWCA “clearly divides maritime workers into two mutually exclusive categories: seamen, on the one hand, and longshoremen, harbor workers and all other employees entitled to protection under the Act, on the other hand.”  The court pointed out that in rare instances longshoremen and harbor worker type workers not covered by the LHWCA  [“Sieracki seamen”] may avail themselves of the duty of seaworthiness.

            The court equally found that the plaintiff was not entitled to pursue an action under 905(b) since his claim on its face admitted that the vessel was built to American Bureau of Shipping standards.  His claim also failed to put forward any evidence that there was constructive knowledge by the owners of any danger associated with the ramp.  Finally, the court noted that in any event, the plaintiff failed to show that any negligence created a genuine issue of material fact since he did not show that the ship owner’s duty of care to an individual such as the plaintiff (an invitee on board to perform navigational related work) had been breached.

Topic  1.7.1    Status--"Maritime Worker"

Southcombe v. A Mark, B Mark, C Mark Corp., 37 BRBS 169 (2003).

            In this status issue case, the Board upheld the ALJ's determination that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment pursuant to Section 2(3) of the LHWCA. The claimant had been employed by a subcontractor as an ironworker. The general contractor was constructing a marina on a river. The marina was to include an 80-foot high "mega yacht" service facility. At the time of the claimant's injury he was unloading steel beams from a flat-bed trailer which were intended for use as the frame of the yacht service facility. The Board first noted that the seminal issue in this matter was whether the claimant's work on the project was maritime employment which is a legal issue to which the Section 20(a) presumption does not attach.

            Next the Board noted that within the jurisdiction of the Fourth Circuit, within whose jurisdiction this case arises, the jurisprudence has drawn a distinction between workers engaged to repair or replace existing harbor or shipyard facilities and those engaged in the construction of new land-based facilities. The Board cited the lead Fourth Circuit case of Weyher/Livsey Constructors, Inc. v. Prevetire, 27 F.3d 985, 28 BRBS 57(CRT)(4th Cir. 1994), cert. denied, 514 U.S. 1063 (1995)(Held, a pipe fitter employed to construct a power plant on the premises of the Norfolk Naval Shipyard was not a covered employee; court declined to expand coverage to include this worker merely because the power plant being built would eventually provide steam and electricity to shipbuilding and ship repair operations.).

            The Board noted that the ALJ found that 1) the claimant was on the premises solely to construct a building, and not to maintain or repair shipyard facilities; 2) pursuant to Prevetire, a finding of coverage cannot rest on the future use of the facility; and 3) the claimant's work was not integral to the loading, unloading, repair or building of vessels. The Board then affirmed the ALJ's finding that the claimant was not engaged in maritime employment. In so doing, the Board distinguished the claimants in Stewart v. Brown & Root, Inc., 7 BRBS 356 (1978), aff'd sub nom. Brown & Root, Inc. v. Joyner, 607 F.2d 1087, 11 BRBS 86 (4th Cir. 1979), cert. denied, 446 U.S. 981 (1980) who had been engaged in the construction of a pier or dry dock or other "uniquely maritime" structure such that coverage could be conferred on this basis. The Board also specifically noted that in the instant case, the claimant's relationship to this facility was merely temporary as he was on the premises solely under a subcontract to build the facility.

Topic  1.7.1    Status--"Maritime Employment" 

Maher Terminals Inc. v. Director, OWCP,     U.S.     (No. 03-312) (Cert. denied (December 15, 2003). [See next entry.]

            The Supreme Court let stand the Third Circuit's holding, Maher Terminals, Inc. v Riggio, 330 F.3d 162 (3d Cir. May 29, 2003), that a worker who spent half his time as a checker and half his time doing office work, was covered by the LHWCA even though he was assigned as a delivery clerk on the day of his injury (injured his arm when he fell off of a chair). Both jobs involved paperwork for cargo. The LHWCA specifically excludes workers who are engaged "exclusively" to perform office clerical, secretarial, security or data processing work.

Topic   1.7.1   Status–"Maritime Worker"

Maher Terminals, Inc. v. Director, OWCP, 330 F.3rd 162 (3^rd Cir. 2003). [See Above.]

            In this status case, the Third Circuit found coverage by looking at the claimant's overall duties, notwithstanding that he was working at an excluded job the day of injury. The court found that because the claimant spent half of his time as a checker and his overall duties included assignment as a checker, an indisputably longshoring job, he was covered under the LHWCA even though he worked as a delivery clerk on the day of his injury. The court cited to the Supreme Court's test for coverage in Northeast Marine Terminal Co. v. Caputo, 432 U.S. 249 (1977), in stating that "we believe that we must look at the claimant's regular duties to determined whether he is engaged on a regular basis in maritime employment." The Third Circuit noted that, in Caputo, the Supreme Court had specifically rejected the "moment of injury" principle in which the coverage analysis depended on the task the employee was engaged in at the time of the injury.

Topic  1.7.1    Status

Morganti v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 37 BRBS 126 (2003).

            In this coverage case, the Board upheld the ALJ's finding of situs/navigability of a lake; but reversed his findings that the worker did not have status, or was excluded under the clerical exclusion of the LHWCA. The decedent here had worked for an employer who manufactures sonar transducers for the United State Navy. He was a test engineer. As such, he worked 70 percent of his time on land, and 30 percent of his time testing the devices over water on a barge that had been moored for 20 years for that purpose. (Of the 30 percent of his time spent over water, 1 percent was spent on a 32 foot shuttle boat going between land and the moored barge.) While untying a boat line, the worker fell into the lake and drowned.

            The Board found that the ALJ correctly held that an economic viability test should not be applied when determining whether a waterway is navigable for purposes of the LHWCA. In doing so, the Board noted that the ALJ correctly applied the Second Circuit's "navigability in fact" test to determine if the waterway is presently used, or is presently capable of being used, as an interstate highway for commercial trade or travel in the customary modes of travel on water.

            As to the status issue, the ALJ had found that the worker's job was not maritime, that the moored barge was a fixed platform, that the worker was transiently over navigable water only 1 percent of his work time, and that even if the worker did have coverage, he was specifically excluded by the clerical worker exclusion of Section 2(3)(A). In reversing the ALJ, the Board made the following legal determinations.

            Citing to Director, OWCP v. Perini North River Associates, 459 U.S. 297, 15 BRBS 62(CRT) (1983), the Board stated that a claimant who is injured or dies on actual navigable waters while in the course of his employment on those waters is a maritime employee under Section 2(3) unless he is specifically excluded from coverage by another statutory provision. The Board found that the ALJ had incorrectly applied Bienvenu v. Texaco, Inc., 1964 F. 3d 901,32 BRBS 217(CRT)(5th Cir. 1999)(en banc)(Held that a worker injured upon navigable waters in the course of employment "meets the status test only if his presence on the water at the time of injury was neither transient nor fortuitous."). Finding that "it is clear that decedent's presence on navigable waters was neither transient nor fortuitous, the Board noted that it need not determine if Bienvenu should be followed in this Second Circuit case.

            In determining that the decedent was a maritime worker, the Board found that the ALJ was mistaken in relying upon case law construing a "vessel in navigation" under the Jones Act, when the issue presented was decedent's coverage under the LHWCA. While the Board acknowledged that under the Jones Act, the key to seaman status is an employment-related connection to a "vessel in navigation," the Board went on to state, "The courts have developed tests for determining whether a floating structure is a ‘vessel in navigation' or a work platform." According to the Board, "A structure may be a vessel for other purposes, yet it will not meet the Jones Act test unless it is ‘in navigation.' An employee injured on a floating structure which is not a ‘vessel in navigation' is thus not entitled to recover under the Jones Act but has his remedy under the Longshore Act as he is not excluded as a ‘member of the crew' under Section 2(3). As the test for distinguishing between a floating work platform and a vessel in navigation under the Jones Act is inapposite to the pertinent issue of coverage under Perini, the [ALJ] erred in relying on it." The Board summed, "As claimant was injured on a structure afloat on navigable waters, claimant was covered under the Act."

            The Board reversed the ALJ's finding that the decedent's presence on navigable waters at the time of his injury and death was transient since it found that the decedent worked over navigable water 30 percent of the time.

            While the Board noted that the decedent's employment responsibilities required him to input the data necessary for the computer to run the appropriate test and print results, it held that it was incorrect to characterize the work as clerical and data processing work. "The mere fact that an employee utilizes a computer in his job and inputs data does not convert a professional engineer utilizing computer skills into a clerical worker."

Topic  1.7.1    Status–“Maritime Worker”

Scott v. Trump Indiana, Inc., 337 F.3d 939, (7th Cir. July 28, 2003).

            In this Admiralty Extension Act and LHWCA 905(b) case, the Seventh Circuit found that neither a land-based crane nor a life raft were “appurtenances” to a vessel. The circuit court further found that the director of safety training was not engaged in maritime employment” for purposes of the LHWCA. The director had been injured on a dock while observing a life raft being lowered onto the dock. His employer had contracted with Trump Indiana to design, install and maintain the lifesaving equipment required by the U.S. Coast Guard for the vessel “Trump Casino.”

Topic  1.7.1    Status-"Maritime Worker"

Watkins v. Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., 36 BRBS 21(2002).

            Held, a claimant's work emptying trash barrels from the side of a ship under construction constitutes maritime employment as it is integral to the shipbuilding and repair process, and moreover, is in furtherance of the employer's compliance with a federal regulation. Here the claimant was assigned to employer's Cleaning and Janitorial Department as a cleaner. The first half of her shift she drove a barrel dumpster, which is a machine that empties debris from 55-gallon drums. She or her partner drove the dumpster to the ships' sides, where the dumpster would pick up the full drums and dump them into the machine. The barrels contained trash and shipbuilding materials such as welding rods and strips of iron. The claimant testified that the shipbuilders would fill the barrels during the course of the day, and the crane would take the full barrels off the vessels and place the barrels at the ships' sides. In addition, the claimant and her partner would drive around to other shipyard buildings and dump dumpsters.

            This case is also noteworthy as to the Board's treatment of the Section 20(a) issue. The Director had argued that the ALJ should have given the claimant the benefit of the Section 20(a) presumption as to jurisdiction. The Board stated that it "need not address the general scope of the Section 20(a) presumption in coverage cases, as the courts have held that the Section 20(a) presumption is not applicable to the legal interpretation of the Act's coverage provision." The Board then cited to several circuits that support this view. However, the Board neglected to point out that several circuits hold opposing views.

Topic  1.7.1    Status

McKenzie v. Crowley American Transport, Inc., 36 BRBS 41(2002).

            Here the Board held that the case law defining "maritime employment" is not so broad as to include a trucker engaged in the land-based movement of cargo outside of the employer's terminal to locations in a port and to the rail head nearby. In other words, this status case turned on determining the point at which cargo moves from the stream of maritime commerce and longshoring operations to the land-based portion of its ultimate destination.

            Specifically, the claimant testified that his job duties as a truck driver at the time of his accident consisted of transporting containers and/or trailers between the maritime yard at the port and the U.S. Customs facility, also located within the port but not within the maritime yard and/or the railroad yard which is located outside the port. He also stated that about 5-10 percent of the time he would transport containers to areas away from the port, such as to Miami. The claimant stated that usually his deliveries would originate or end at a holding yard in the maritime yard, although occasionally he would be required to make deliveries and/or pick-ups alongside the dock, termed "hot loads." He stated that at no time did he ever board any ships, as the containers at the dockside were loaded onto and unloaded from ships. The manager of intermodal transportation and trucking operations concurred with the claimant's description of his work. Specifically, he stated that there were other drivers hired by another entity that transported cargo inside the port facility, while cargo moved into or out of the port facility.

            In reaching its decision, the Board noted that the claimant's primary job duties, which involved the transport of cargo between a holding yard at the port and a rail yard outside the port, are not covered activities. "[C]laimant drove a truck not to move cargo as part of a loading process, but to start it on its overland journey." The Board also noted that the fact that the claimant may have made stops inside the port does not alter the fact that he was an overland truck driver. The evidence established that on the occasions that the claimant drove to customs, he continued on to his destination beyond the port.

Topic  1.7.1    Status––"Maritime Worker" ("Maritime Employment")

Sumler v. Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company, 36 BRBS 97 (2002), aff’g 35 BRBS 968(ALJ), 34 BRBS 213(ALJ).

            Here the Board affirmed the ALJ's finding that the Section 2(3) status requirement was satisfied as the uncontroverted evidence of record supported his conclusion that the claimant's work, changing air conditioning filters in the fabrication shops in the employer's shipyard, was integral to the operation of those shops. In the course of the claimant's work in the employer's air conditioning department, the claimant cut, delivered, and helped to change air conditioning filters used in the employer's buildings throughout the shipyard. The Board found it significant that the claimant delivered filters to buildings where ship construction work was being performed. The air conditioning filters with which the claimant worked were used for the ventilation of the employer's shipyard buildings which were all inside the shipyard and where the ships were actually constructed. Filters needed to be changed more frequently in buildings in which actual ship construction activity was performed than in other shipyard buildings.

            The employer argued that there was no evidence to suggest that ventilation in its fabrication facilities would be impeded without the claimant to occasionally change the filters and that air conditioning itself was merely a comfort measure, incidental to the shipbuilding process. However, the Board noted evidence that claimant's duties included the continuous changing of filters in the shipyard buildings where ship fabrication and construction was performed, and that those filters where fabrication occurred were changed on a frequent basis. The Board reasoned that the evidence supported the ALJ's conclusion that the claimant's work was integral.

            As to the argument that air conditioning is "merely a comfort measure" the Board stated, "[I]t defies common sense to suggest that employer would have incurred the considerable expense of installing and maintaining an air-conditioning system for the past fifty years if such a system were not required in order for employer to operate a competitive shipbuilding operation in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

            Employer also argued that the claimant's duties have no traditional maritime characteristics, but rather, are typical of "support services" performed in any industrial setting. However, the Board noted that reliance on this reasoning regarding support services is misplaced, as this rationale has previously been rejected as a test for coverage. Moreover, the Board, in its earlier decision in this case, expressly stated that the standard for coverage does not concern whether the claimant's duties were more maritime specific than those conducted in non-maritime settings.

            Next, the Board rejected the employer's contention that the evidence does not establish that ventilation in the fabrication shop would be impeded without the claimant's work changing the filters in those areas. "It would be inconsistent with the Supreme Court's decision in Schwalb [Chesapeake & Ohio Ry. Co. v. Schwalb, 493 U.S. 40, 23 BRBS 96 (CRT)(1989)] to require claimant to demonstrate with specific evidence, such as the level of particulates in the air in the shipyard fabrication shops or the frequency with which air conditioning filters require changing, the effects of claimant's failure to perform her job....Moreover, claimant is not required to demonstrate that the effect on the air conditioning system would be immediate were she not to replace the filter rather, her work is considered essential if her failure to replace the filters would eventually impede the operation of the air conditioning system."

            As the only evidence of record supports the conclusion that the claimant's work was essential to the continued functioning of the employer's shipyard's air conditioning system, and that this system was integral to the employer's shipyard operations, the [ALJ's] finding of Section 2(3) coverage was affirmed.

Topic  1.7.1    Status "Maritime Worker" ("Maritime Employment")

Christensen v. Georgia-Pacific Corp, 279 F.3d 807 (9th Cir.2002).

[ED. NOTE: While the forum for "905(b) negligence claims is federal district court, the Ninth Circuit's general language as to "coverage" under the LHWCA is noteworthy here.]

            At issue in this "905(b)" claim [33 U.S.C. § 905(b)] was whether the district court had properly granted a motion for summary judgment when it held that, as a matter of law, the injury was not a foreseeable result of the appellee's acts. The Ninth Circuit reversed, finding that genuine issues of material fact existed as to breach of duty and proximate cause that must be resolved at trial.

            Under Section 905(b), a claimant can sue a vessel for negligence under the LHWCA. However the Supreme Court has limited the duties that a vessel owner owes to the stevedores working for him or her. Scindia Steam Navigation Co. v. De Los Santos, 451 U.S. 156, (1981) (A vessel owes three duties to its stevedores: the turnover duty, the active control duty, and the intervention duty.).

            In Christensen, the Ninth Circuit noted that "Coverage does not depend upon the task which the employee was performing at the moment of injury." [Ninth Circuit cites Brady-Hamilton Stevedore Co. v. Herron, 568 F.2d 137, 140 (9th Cir. 1978); H. Rep. No. 98-570, at 3-4 (1984), reprinted in 1984 U.S.C.C.A.N. §§ 2734, 2736-37.] The court found that claimant "was engaged as a stevedore and routinely worked at loading and unloading cargo from ships. Therefore, he is covered by the LHWCA."

Topic 1.7.1     Status-"Maritime Worker

Watkins v. Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., 36 BRBS 21(2002).

            Held, a claimant's work emptying trash barrels from the side of a ship under construction constitutes maritime employment as it is integral to the shipbuilding and repair process, and moreover, is in furtherance of the employer's compliance with a federal regulation. Here the claimant was assigned to employer's Cleaning and Janitorial Department as a cleaner. The first half of her shift she drove a barrel dumpster, which is a machine that empties debris from 55-gallon drums. She or her partner drove the dumpster to the ships' sides, where the dumpster would pick up the full drums and dump them into the machine. The barrels contained trash and shipbuilding materials such as welding rods and strips of iron. The claimant testified that the shipbuilders would fill the barrels during the course of the day, and the crane would take the full barrels off the vessels and place the barrels at the ships' sides. In addition, the claimant and her partner would drive around to other shipyard buildings and dump dumpsters.

            This case is also noteworthy as to the Board's treatment of the Section 20(a) issue. The Director had argued that the ALJ should have given the claimant the benefit of the Section 20(a) presumption as to jurisdiction. The Board stated that it "need not address the general scope of the Section 20(a) presumption in coverage cases, as the courts have held that the Section 20(a) presumption is not applicable to the legal interpretation of the Act's coverage provision." The Board then cited to several circuits that support this view. However, the Board neglected to point out that several circuits hold opposing views.

Topic  1.7.1    Status–“Maritime Worker”

Buck v. General Dynamics Corp/Electric Boat Corp., 37 BRBS 53 (2003); consolidated with Rondeau v. General Dynamics Corp/Electric Boat Corp., (BRB No. 02-0535) (April 24, 2003).

            At issue in these consolidated cases was whether the employer was entitled to summary decision as a matter of law where the ALJs concluded that the claimants’ work was not integral to the shipbuilding and repair process.  The relevant facts concerning the claimants’ job duties, as alleged by the employer and accepted by the ALJs are: 1) the only relationship between the claimants’ duties and the shipbuilding process was to administer workers’ compensation claims for all Electric Boat employees; and 2) the responsibilities of a workers’ compensation adjuster at Electric Boat include adjusting workers’ compensation claims, using a new computer system, setting up payment schedules, organizing files, and reporting to supervisors.  Further, the motions for summary decision averred that claimant Buck did not enter the shipyard to fulfill his job duties, and that Claimant Rondeau entered the shipyard four times to interview supervisors in connection with weekly safety meetings with department

and yard supervisors and superintendents. 

            The claimants contend that their responsibilities resulted in injured employees’ being returned to the work force as soon as possible, and thus that their work was integral to the shipbuilding process.  The Board noted pertinent case law.  Sanders v. Alabama Dry Dock & Shipbuilding Co., 841 F.2d 1085, 21 BRBS 18(CRT) (11th Cir. 1988), rev’g 20 BRBS 104 (1987)(Held, labor relations assistant was covered under § 2(3)); Chesapeake & Ohio Ry. Co. v. Schwalb, 493 U.S. 40, 23 BRBS 96(CRT)(1989)(Held, it has been clearly decided that, aside from the specified occupations [in Section 2(3)], land-based activity...will be deemed maritime only if it is an integral or essential part of loading or unloading [or building or repairing] a vessel.”  Coverage “is not limited to employees who are denominated ‘longshore’ or who physically handle the cargo.”); American Stevedoring, Ltd. v. Marinelli, 248 F.3d 54, 35 BRBS 41(CRT) (2d Cir. 2001), aff’g 34 BRBS 112 (2000)(Union shop steward covered.). [However, subsequently the Eleventh Circuit observed that the “significant relationship” test for coverage used in Sanders was rejected by the Supreme Court in Schwalb.]

            The Board found that the claimants’ attempt to establish that they interacted with employees and supervisors to the extent the claimants did in Sanders and Marinelli was not borne out by the portion of their depositions attached to the employer’s motions for summary decision.  Based on the evidence, the Board found that the ALJs had rationally concluded that they could not infer that the claimants’ failure to perform their jobs would eventually lead to work stoppages or otherwise interrupt the shipbuilding and repair activities at the employer’s shipyard.

Topic  1.7.1    Status–“Maritime Worker”

Dickerson v. Mississippi Phosphates Corp., 37 BRBS 58 (2003).

            In this case involving situs and status, the claimant fell off of a ladder while welding in employer’s phosphoric acid plant located about 100 feet from the water’s edge.  Employer’s chemical plant manufactures fertilizer and is on a navigable waterway.    The plant takes in phosphoric rock by vessel, converts it into sulfuric acid and then phosphoric acid, and the phosphoric acid is made into a fertilizer.  The fertilizer leaves the plant by rail, truck or barge.  The claimant described his job as requiring him to weld pipe and operate forklifts, cherry pickers, and front end loaders.  His supervisor stated that the claimant’s work required him to perform a lot of steel fabrication work, some expansion work in the plant, some pipefitting, and foundation work for machinery.  The claimant conceded that he never loaded or unloaded vessels, and did not maintain or repair any equipment used in the loading or unloading of a vessel.  For two weeks during his employment, the claimant did remove wood pilings from the water’s edge.

            The Board affirmed the ALJ’s finding that the piling removal work was not covered employment as there was no evidence establishing that the removing of the pilings from the water’s edge was related to the loading, unloading, building, or repairing of a vessel, or to building or repairing a harbor facility used for such activity.  Moreover, the Board found that this case was distinguishable from other cases involving “covered” employees working in loading operations at fertilizer plants, as the claimant’s work herein was not integral to the loading and unloading. Thus, the Board upheld the ALJ’s determination that the claimant was not an employee covered under the LHWCA.

            Turning to situs, the Board determined that the ALJ had correctly found that there was not a covered situs.  The Board noted that for coverage, one must look to the nature of the place of work at the moment of injury and that to be considered a covered situs, a landward site must be either one of the sites specifically enumerated in Section 3(a) or an adjoining area customarily used by an employer in loading, unloading, repairing, dismantling or building a vessel.  The Board noted that an “adjoining area” must therefore have a maritime use.  It upheld the ALJ’s determination that this phosphoric acid plant was solely used in the fertilizer manufacturing process and had no relation to any customary maritime activity.  The Board further rejected the claimant’s contention that his injury occurred on a covered situs merely because employer’s entire facility abuts navigable waters and has a dock area on the property.  The Board noted prior case law distinguishing a plant from its docks when a worker worked solely in the plant.

Topic  1.7.1    Status—"Maritime Worker" ("Maritime Employment")

Sidwell v. Virginia International Terminals, 372 F.3d 238 (4th Cir. 2004).

            The Fourth Circuit held that employment as president of a local longshore union did not constitute maritime employment that exposed the worker to injurious stimuli and that therefore, the local union was not responsible for his noise-induced hearing loss. The claimant was diagnosed with his hearing loss while union president. Although the president generally discharged his duties as president from his home, in order to address specific issues or grievances he would appear from time to time at one or more of the waterfront terminals where his members worked. As a result of these visits, he spent approximately one hour per week at locations where longshoring activity was taking place. Prior to becoming a full-time employee of the local union, the claimant worked as a container repair mechanic routinely using air-powered pressure-washers, chippers, grinders, and tire changers. It was undisputed that the operation of these tools as well as other machinery and vehicles in the area contributed to high levels of noise throughout the work-day.

            In deciding this issue, the Fourth Circuit found that the question becomes one of whether the president's duties were such that his occupation can be considered "integral or essential" to the process of loading or unloading vessels so as to bring him within the category of other persons engaged in longshoring operations. The court distinquished the instant case from that of American Stevedoring Limited v. Marinelli, 248 F.3d 54 (2d Cir. 2001)(work of a union steward paid by a stevedoring company was integral and essential to the company's longshoring operation.) In Marinelli, the steward worked at the waterfront terminal serving as an arbitrator between the company and union members. "Significantly, as an adjunct to his responsibilities for maintaining safety and enforcing its terms, the collective bargaining agreement under which the shop steward worked vested him with authority to unilaterally order a work stoppage. Important to the court was the fact that the union steward in Marinelli could stop work, halting the ship loading process.

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Topic  1.7.2    Status—Harbor Worker

Tarver v. BO-MAC Contractors, Inc., 37 BRBS 120 (2003).

            In this situs issue case, the Board overturned the ALJ's finding of coverage based on circuit case law that was issued subsequent to the ALJ's decision. Here the claimant was a welder involved in the construction of barge slips on undeveloped land adjacent to the intracoastal waterway. He was injured on the land side of the excavation. At the time of his injury the slip walls were in place and some water would enter into the excavated hole at high tide through a pipe in the wall. The ALJ had found that the injury occurred on a covered situs because the site had a maritime purpose, even though it was incomplete.

            Subsequent to the ALJ issuing his decision, the Fifth Circuit issued Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300, 36 BRBS 79(CRT) (5th Cir. 2002), cert. denied, ___ U.S. ___, 124 S.Ct. 65, 2003 WL 21180139 (Oct. 6, 2003) (Future maritime use does not suffice to confer situs.) The Board acknowledged that "[a]lthough the barge slip under construction was being built solely for maritime purposes, we are constrained by the foregoing case law to hold that this site is not covered pursuant to Section 3(a) of the Act." The Board noted that the circuit case law now makes the nature of the site prior to its completion a deciding factor. It further noted that although the site was suitable for maritime uses, at the time of the claimant's injury, neither the site nor any immediately surrounding areas was used for a maritime purpose. "The Fifth Circuit's decisions….contemplate either that, at the time of claimant's injury, the location have a current maritime use, or that the site of the project under construction had been navigable waters or another covered site previously."

Topic  1.7.2    Status—Harbor Worker

Terlemezian v. J.H. Reid General Contracting, 37 BRBS 112 (2003).

            In this status case, the claimant was a "dock builder foreman" on a road project at Ports Elizabeth and Newark where he was responsible for driving sheet piling for a cofferdam. The Board upheld the ALJ's opinion that the claimant did not have status. The claimant had contended that his work was integral to the loading process as the road project was designed to alleviate delays in loading and unloading while rail cars are brought in and out of the port. The Board affirmed the ALJ's finding that the claimant was not a covered employee as his work was not an essential element of the loading process. The Board noted that while the project the claimant was working on had the potential to affect the loading and unloading process in the future by increasing the volume of containers moving through the port, it did not affect the loading and unloading process at the time of the claimant's injury. "More importantly, claimant has not demonstrated that his work on the project was integral to the loading or unloading process or that his failure to perform his work would impede that process." The Board stated that the claimant has not established a sufficient nexus between a road project designed to improve the movement of rail cars and trucks in land transportation in the future and the actual task of loading and unloading containers from ships on the docks or in moving cargo in intermediate steps within the port.

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Topic  1.7.4  Self Employed Worker

Anastasiou v. M/T World Trust, ___ F.Supp 2d ___ (02 CV 1917 (ILG))((E. Dist. NY Oct. 1, 2004).

            This is an Order Denying A Motion for a Summary Judgment.  The plaintiff was the sole employee and owner of a company called Maritech Electronics.  He slipped and fell, breaking his leg on a ramp shortly after boarding a vessel on which he was supposed to conduct an annual radio safety survey.  The defendants allege entitlement to a Summary Judgment, arguing that the plaintiff is covered under the LHWCA and that his negligence claim does not on its face disclose any negligence on the part of the vessel.

            The court found that the plaintiff satisfied both pre- and post-1972 LHWCA amendment tests for coverage.  The plaintiff had alleged that he did not fall under the protections of the LHWCA because his work in conducting the radio survey was not an “integral or essential part of loading or unloading a vessel.”  The court found that the plaintiff misread pertinent case law and that the Second Circuit has held that an individual satisfies the status test where he has “a significant relationship to navigation or to commerce on navigable waters.”  The court noted that the LHWCA “clearly divides maritime workers into two mutually exclusive categories: seamen, on the one hand, and longshoremen, harbor workers and all other employees entitled to protection under the Act, on the other hand.”  The court pointed out that in rare instances longshoremen and harbor worker type workers not covered by the LHWCA  [“Sieracki seamen”] may avail themselves of the duty of seaworthiness.

            The court equally found that the plaintiff was not entitled to pursue an action under 905(b) since his claim on its face admitted that the vessel was built to American Bureau of Shipping standards.  His claim also failed to put forward any evidence that there was constructive knowledge by the owners of any danger associated with the ramp.  Finally, the court noted that in any event, the plaintiff failed to show that any negligence created a genuine issue of material fact since he did not show that the ship owner’s duty of care to an individual such as the plaintiff (an invitee on board to perform navigational related work) had been breached.

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Topic  1.9  Maritime Employer

Anastasiou v. M/T World Trust, ___ F.Supp 2d ___ (02 CV 1917 (ILG))((E. Dist. NY Oct. 1, 2004).

            This is an Order Denying Motion for a Summary Judgment.  The plaintiff was the sole employee and owner of a company called Maritech Electronics.  He slipped and fell, breaking his leg on a ramp shortly after boarding a vessel on which he was supposed to conduct an annual radio safety survey.  The defendants allege entitlement to a Summary Judgment, arguing that the plaintiff is covered under the LHWCA and that his negligence claim does not on its face disclose any negligence on the part of the vessel.

            The court found that the plaintiff satisfied both pre- and post-1972 LHWCA amendment tests for coverage.  The plaintiff had alleged that he did not fall under the protections of the LHWCA because his work in conducting the radio survey was not an “integral or essential part of loading or unloading a vessel.”  The court found that the plaintiff misread pertinent case law and that the Second Circuit has held that an individual satisfies the status test where he has “a significant relationship to navigation or to commerce on navigable waters.”  The court noted that the LHWCA “clearly divides maritime workers into two mutually exclusive categories: seamen, on the one hand, and longshoremen, harbor workers and all other employees entitled to protection under the Act, on the other hand.”  The court pointed out that in rare instances longshoremen and harbor worker type workers not covered by the LHWCA  [“Sieracki seamen”] may avail themselves of the duty of seaworthiness.

            The court equally found that the plaintiff was not entitled to pursue an action under 905(b) since his claim on its face admitted that the vessel was built to American Bureau of Shipping standards.  His claim also failed to put forward any evidence that there was constructive knowledge by the owners of any danger associated with the ramp.  Finally, the court noted that in any event, the plaintiff failed to show that any negligence created a genuine issue of material fact since he did not show that the ship owner’s duty of care to an individual such as the plaintiff (an invitee on board to perform navigational related work) had been breached.

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Topic  1.11.6  “Employee” exclusions

Scott v. Trump Indiana, Inc., 337 F.3d 939, (7th Cir. July 28, 2003).

            In this Admiralty Extension Act and LHWCA 905(b) case, the Seventh Circuit found that neither a land-based crane nor a life raft were “appurtenances” to a vessel. The circuit court further found that the director of safety training was not engaged in maritime employment” for purposes of the LHWCA. The director had been injured on a dock while observing a life raft being lowered onto the dock. His employer had contracted with Trump Indiana to design, install and maintain the lifesaving equipment required by the U.S. Coast Guard for the vessel “Trump Casino.”

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Topic  1.11.7  Jurisdiction/Coverage—Exclusions To Coverage -- Clerical/secretarial/security/data processing employees

Morganti v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 37 BRBS 126 (2003).

            In this coverage case, the Board upheld the ALJ's finding of situs/navigability of a lake; but reversed his findings that the worker did not have status, or was excluded under the clerical exclusion of the LHWCA. The decedent here had worked for an employer who manufactures sonar transducers for the United State Navy. He was a test engineer. As such, he worked 70 percent of his time on land, and 30 percent of his time testing the devices over water on a barge that had been moored for 20 years for that purpose. (Of the 30 percent of his time spent over water, 1 percent was spent on a 32 foot shuttle boat going between land and the moored barge.) While untying a boat line, the worker fell into the lake and drowned.

            The Board found that the ALJ correctly held that an economic viability test should not be applied when determining whether a waterway is navigable for purposes of the LHWCA. In doing so, the Board noted that the ALJ correctly applied the Second Circuit's "navigability in fact" test to determine if the waterway is presently used, or is presently capable of being used, as an interstate highway for commercial trade or travel in the customary modes of travel on water.

            As to the status issue, the ALJ had found that the worker's job was not maritime, that the moored barge was a fixed platform, that the worker was transiently over navigable water only 1 percent of his work time, and that even if the worker did have coverage, he was specifically excluded by the clerical worker exclusion of Section 2(3)(A). In reversing the ALJ, the Board made the following legal determinations.

            Citing to Director, OWCP v. Perini North River Associates, 459 U.S. 297, 15 BRBS 62(CRT) (1983), the Board stated that a claimant who is injured or dies on actual navigable waters while in the course of his employment on those waters is a maritime employee under Section 2(3) unless he is specifically excluded from coverage by another statutory provision. The Board found that the ALJ had incorrectly applied Bienvenu v. Texaco, Inc., 1964 F. 3d 901,32 BRBS 217(CRT)(5th Cir. 1999)(en banc)(Held that a worker injured upon navigable waters in the course of employment "meets the status test only if his presence on the water at the time of injury was neither transient nor fortuitous."). Finding that "it is clear that decedent's presence on navigable waters was neither transient nor fortuitous, the Board noted that it need not determine if Bienvenu should be followed in this Second Circuit case.

            In determining that the decedent was a maritime worker, the Board found that the ALJ was mistaken in relying upon case law construing a "vessel in navigation" under the Jones Act, when the issue presented was decedent's coverage under the LHWCA. While the Board acknowledged that under the Jones Act, the key to seaman status is an employment-related connection to a "vessel in navigation," the Board went on to state, "The courts have developed tests for determining whether a floating structure is a ‘vessel in navigation' or a work platform." According to the Board, "A structure may be a vessel for other purposes, yet it will not meet the Jones Act test unless it is ‘in navigation.' An employee injured on a floating structure which is not a ‘vessel in navigation' is thus not entitled to recover under the Jones Act but has his remedy under the Longshore Act as he is not excluded as a ‘member of the crew' under Section 2(3). As the test for distinguishing between a floating work platform and a vessel in navigation under the Jones Act is inapposite to the pertinent issue of coverage under Perini, the [ALJ] erred in relying on it." The Board summed, "As claimant was injured on a structure afloat on navigable waters, claimant was covered under the Act."

            The Board reversed the ALJ's finding that the decedent's presence on navigable waters at the time of his injury and death was transient since it found that the decedent worked over navigable water 30 percent of the time.

            While the Board noted that the decedent's employment responsibilities required him to input the data necessary for the computer to run the appropriate test and print results, it held that it was incorrect to characterize the work as clerical and data processing work. "The mere fact that an employee utilizes a computer in his job and inputs data does not convert a professional engineer utilizing computer skills into a clerical worker."

Topic  1.11.7  Jurisdiction/Coverage–Exclusions to Coverage -- Clerical/secretarial/security/data processing employees

Boone v. Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., 37 BRBS 1 (2003).

            In this coverage case, the employer alleges that the ALJ used an overly narrow definition of the term “office” to determine that the claimant was not excluded from coverage pursuant to Section 2(3)(A) of the LHWCA.  The Board noted that in Williams v. Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., 47 F.3d 1166, 29 BRBS 75(CRT)(4th Cir. 1995)(table), vacating 28 BRBS 42 (1994), the Fourth Circuit held that the ALJ failed to consider “the ultimate questions whether Petitioner’s duties were exclusively clerical and performed exclusively in a business office.”  In its previous decision on reconsideration in the present case, the Board agreed with the Director’s position that the legislative history regarding Section 2(3)(A) indicated that the term “office” modified the term “clerical,” and that only clerical work performed exclusively in a business office was intended to be excluded.  On remand, the ALJ had found that while the term “business office” was not defined by statute or pertinent case law, it was generally understood to be an enclosed or semi-enclosed area which was likely to be characterized by the presence of desks, chairs, telephones, computer terminals, copy machines, and perhaps book shelves.  The ALJ found that this contrasted with a warehouse, which is a large open area where supplies are received, stored and dispensed.  In the instant case, the Board found that these determinations by the ALJ were rational. 

            The ALJ next found that the claimant’s main work area in the instant case was in a warehouse and that computer work, telephoning, copying and other traditional business office functions would not have been performed in that area.  Thus, the ALJ concluded that the claimant did not work exclusively in a business office.  The ALJ based this finding on the photographs submitted by employer, claimant’s affidavit, and claimant’s testimony at the hearing, all of which he found were un-contradicted.  The employer contended that the claimant’s work area should be characterized as a “rolling business office.”  However, the Board further noted that the legislative history of Section 2(3)(a) reveals the intent to exclude employees who are “confined physically and by function to the administrative areas of the employer’s operations.”  See 1984 U.S.C.C.A.N. §§ 2734, 2737.  The Board noted that the ALJ considered the function of the claimant’s work area and concluded that it was a warehouse floor and not a “business office,” and found that this finding was rational and supported by substantial evidence.

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Topic  1.11.8  Jurisdiction/Coverage--Exclusions To Coverage—Employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet

Bazor v. Boomtown Belle Casino, ___ U.S. ___, ___ S.Ct. ___ (Mem), 2003 WL 21180139 (Cert. denied Oct. 6, 2003).  [See next entry.]

            As previously noted in the Digest and Supplement, in denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit had held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002). The Fifth Circuit had found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further had found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

Topic  1.11.8  Jurisdiction/Coverage--Exclusions To Coverage––Employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet

Boomtown Belle Casino v. Bazor, 313 F.3d 300 (5th Cir. 2002). [See Above.]

            In denying status to the claimant, the Fifth Circuit held that a floating casino is a "recreational operation," and thus comes within the Section 2(3)(B) exclusion. The court found that this exclusion turns, as an initial matter, on the nature of the employing entity, and not on the nature of the duties an employee performs: "The plain language of [the section] excludes from coverage ‘‘individuals employed by a club, camp, recreational operation, restaurant, museum, or retail outlet' without reference to the nature of the work they do."

            The Fifth Circuit further found that the claimant did not have "situs" when it stated, "Whether an adjoining area is a Section 3(a) situs is determined by the nature of the adjoining area at the time of injury." In the instant case, at the time of the decedent's stroke, the Boomtown facility had yet to be used for a maritime purpose. Nobody had loaded or unloaded cargo, and nobody had repaired, dismantled, or built a vessel.

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