Preview:

SUPREME COURT OF LOUISIANA

No. 97-C-3103

JOSEPH VENDETTO Versus SONAT OFFSHORE DRILLING CO.

ON WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF APPEAL, FIRST CIRCUIT, PARISH OF ST. MARY

LEMMON, Justice* This is an action to recover damages for personal injuries incurred by a seaman aboard a ship. Plaintiff seeks recovery under the Jones Act, based on the negligence of plaintiff's employer, and under the general maritime law, based on the unseaworthiness of defendant's vessel. The principal issue is the correctness of the holdings by the court of appeal that plaintiff failed to prove Jones Act negligence and that the trial court's finding of unseaworthiness was manifestly erroneous.

Facts Plaintiff worked for six years for defendant drilling company as a seaman aboard the DISCOVERER 534, a drilling vessel owned and operated by defendant. He had previously worked for another employer for two years in a job that also required lifting and carrying of heavy objects.

____________________
*Calogero, C.J., not on panel. Rule IV, Part 2,

Download 97-C-3103 JOSEPH VENDETTO v. SONAT OFFSHORE DRILLING CO..pdf

Louisiana Law