Thursday, July 1, 2010

Don’t miss the boat on your injury claim against a cruise ship.

As per, Federal maritime law, an owner of a sea-going vessel can establish a one-year statute of limitation in its passenger contract. "Generally, contract provisions limiting the time parties may bring suit have been held to be enforceable, if reasonable. Such provisions are accepted by the courts as long as they do not violate public policy." (citation omitted). In a recent New Jersey case, WINOGRAD v. CARNIVAL CORPORATION, this law was upheld. In Winograd, a friend of the plaintiff, who accompanied her on the cruise, purchased the cruise tickets from a travel agent, for a cruise on Costa Cruise Lines N.V. The plaintiff and her friend disembarked from the ship when it arrived at La Romana a port city in the Dominican Republic, and went by shuttle bus to the port from the cruise ship. While walking in the shopping district, the plaintiff and her friend were robbed by men with knives, who stole their passports, drivers licenses, credit cards, and other personal effects. In her lawsuit the plaintiff alleged that she suffered physical and emotional injury as a result of the robbery. Nearly two years later, plaintiff filed suit in the Law Division. The appellate panel affirmed the trial court's dismissal of Plaintiff's complaint based on the one-year limitation set forth in the ticket contract. This is another example why it is important to talk to an attorney ASAP when you have suffered an injury on a cruise ship or any where for that matter. Lawsuits are time sensitive and without proper counsel your could miss the boat on your legal claim.

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