Workplace emergencies are unforeseen situations that threaten your employees, customers or the public, disrupts or shutdowns your operations, or causes physical or environmental damage. Many...

The Jones Act (formally known as Section 27 of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920) has been discussed at the Longshore Insider (formerly AEU Longshore Blog) on several previous occasions. The context...

Section 7(b) (33 U.S.C. 907(b)) of the U.S. Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act states, in no uncertain terms, “The employee shall have the right to choose an attending physician …” ...

At AEU, we strive to provide members the resources they need to minimize risk and reduce workplace injuries. Still, we know that accidents happen — and they can be made worse by a drawn-out,...

Question: An employee retires voluntarily, i.e., the retirement is entirely due to reasons unrelated to a work injury, such as a shift change that the worker finds unacceptable. After retirement, he...

POSITIVE SIGNS EXIST, BUT THE TWO-YEAR OUTLOOK FOR THE MARITIME INDUSTRY REMAINS HAZY While a healthy U.S. economy and several positive trends bode well, volatility with shipping volumes and...

A recent survey by FutureNautics revealed that fewer than one in eight crew members on maritime vessels are even aware of cyber policies, which can pose a huge concern for maritime operations. In...

On January 18, 2018, we discussed the Top Ten Principles of the Last Employer Rule in Occupational Disease cases and the different applications of the Last Employer Rule as applied in occupational...

The Last (Maritime) Employer Rule and the Aggravation Rule are the two methods of assigning liability in Longshore Act cases. Since they are well-established in Longshore Act jurisprudence, it may...

This is Part Two of a brief review of some interesting Longshore Act cases from calendar year 2017. In the Matter of the Complaint of Buchanan Marine, L.P., as Bareboat Charterer of the Barge...

This is Part One of a brief review of interesting (to me) cases decided during calendar year 2017 by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Benefits Review Board and the federal circuit courts of appeal. ...

If the Act is to be opened for Amendment, there are other key issues currently the subject of conflict in the jurisprudence that can be addressed. The definition of “adjoining” in section 3(a) can...

This is a continuation of the discussion of possible amendments to the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. In that post was a list of what I consider to be the top tier of potential...

It’s been 100 years since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Southern Pacific RR Co. v. Jensen, (244 U.S. 205 (1917)), established the “Jensen” line, limiting the coverage of states’ workers’...

ANNUAL INCREASE By Industry Notice No. 162, dated September 12, 2017, The U.S. Department of Labor, which administers the Longshore Act, has announced the new National Average Weekly Wage (NAWW)...

A recent decision by the Supreme Court of Texas offers a discussion of an issue that is important to employers (and insurance carriers) struggling to distinguish between liability for injured...

This is Part Two of a compilation of occupation-specific status discussions from past AEU Longshore blog postings. Construction Workers A few years back, we covered the Longshore Act status of ...

Questions regularly arise with regard to Longshore Act coverage for dredging operations. These operations present several key coverage issues worth discussing. Overview Dredging is usually done to...

A recent decision from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Benefits Review Board (“the Board”) illustrates some challenges related to the adjudication of hearing loss claims under the Longshore and...

Coverage questions about maritime “status” under the Longshore Act arise regularly, and the AEU Longshore Blog has addressed different occupations in various posts. Most recently we have discussed...