The Costa Concordia disaster has created some of the weirdest stories I have ever heard of in the field of maritime law. The notion of a playboy captain dining with a young blonde former ship dancer while the cruise ship heads towards disaster would be an improbable movie script if the story were not so
lawsuit
Lawsuits Arising Out of Triumph Fire Continue to be Filed Against Carnival Cruise Line
Lawsuits continue to be filed against Carnival arising out of the fire-disabled Triumph cruise ship.
Passengers were subjected to disgusting conditions due to overflowing toilets and a lack of air-conditioning. We made a decision not to be involved in any lawsuits against Carnival in this case. Yes, many people were inconvenienced but most sustained no…
Carnival Cruise Strip Search Trial Continues
The case of a young girl strip searched by Carnival Cruise employees is expected to reach the jury early this week.
The case involves allegations that over-zealous Carnival officers strip searched a 17 year old passenger suspected of possessing pot while aboard the Sensation cruise ship.
The search allegedly included a cavity inspection and the girl…
Carnival Booze Cruise Disaster Ends Up In Court
Courthouse News Service reports on a disturbing story of Carnival allegedly over-serving alcohol to a passenger who fell off the cruise ship and then not taking reasonable steps to rescue the overboard woman.
The case involves cruise passenger "Sarah." As Courthouse News explains:
"After Carnival cruises got her so drunk she fell overboard, and eyewitnesses…
Carnival Triumph Lawsuits – A Just Cause or a Money Grab?
On February 10th the Carnival Triumph’s engine room caught fire fire and was quickly extinguished. No one was burned. No one choked and gasped for air. No one died. No family members mourned the loss of their loved ones or buried their dead.
Three weeks later there is a litigation frenzy with lawyers from New…
Costa Concordia Litigation: Tactical Blunder By Carnival Opens Door For Lawsuits in Miami
A couple of weeks ago (February 4th), Carnival won a major victory in defending the personal injury cases arising out of the Costa Concordia disaster when a federal judge in South Florida granted Carnival’s motion to dismiss and ordered that the case must be filed in Italy if the passengers wish to proceed.
In the…
Triumph Fire: Here Comes the Lawsuits! (Part 2): Miami Firm Files Class Action Lawsuit
Go big or stay home, so the saying goes.
This weekend there have been several articles discussing the two lawsuits filed last Friday against Carnival arising out of the Carnival Triumph "cruise from hell." I have thrown in my two cents in television & radio appearances and in a number of local and…
Carnival Triumph Cruise From Hell: Here Come the Lawsuits!
Last Friday, the day the Carnival Triumph passengers were finally going home from the "cruise from hell," the first two lawsuits were filed.
The first case mentioned in the press was filed by a Texas lawyer representing a woman from Brazoria County Texas. I printed a copy from the court’s online docket to read this…
Another Judge Dismisses Costa Concordia Lawsuit Filed in Florida
Last September Carnival won its first battle arising out of the January 2012 Costa Concordia disaster when U.S. District Court judge Robin Rosenbaum held that the lawsuits against Carnival should be filed in Italy.
In that case, a thousand businesses on the island of Giglio where the Concordia cruise ship ran aground near the harbor tried…
Groping on the High Seas? John Travolta – Fabian Zanzi Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Over, Finally
A year ago. Cruise Law News was the first one in the U.S. to report that a Royal Caribbean crew member, Fabian Zanzi, claimed that movie celebrity John Travolta sexually harassed and assaulted him during a cruise. We had first heard of the alleged incident several years ago from a crew member client who worked…
Cruising, “Eh!” to Z! What Canadians Should Know Before Getting On-Board . . .
Danielle Gauer, JD Candidate 2013 University of Ottawa, Faculty of Law, joins us for another guest blog. You can read about Danielle’s background and read her first guest blog here. This blog is an interesting inside look at cruising for our friends north of the border:
More and more Canadians are looking for a…
“Boob Cruise” Charter Boat Captain Ordered to Pay $350,000 in Compensation to Injured Woman
And now for some weird cruise news . . .
The owner and operator of an Australian "boob cruise" charter boat, Dennis Healey, who was below deck with strippers when his boat collided with another smaller vessel, has been ordered to pay an injured woman almost $350,000 in compensation.
The incident involved the 56 foot…
No Jury Trial For Seriously Injured Dancer Aboard HAL’s Oosterdam
Courthouse News Service reports on a case involving a crew member from Canada who was employed aboard a Holland America Line (HAL) cruise ship.
The Canadian crew member, employed on the Oosterdam cruise ship as a dancer, suffered a serious career-ending injury, but is being denied the right to take his case before a jury.…
South African Man Sues MSC Cruises for Medical Negligence
A newspaper in South African reports that a man cruising aboard a MSC cruise ship has sued the cruise line, Mediterranean Shipping Company, for damages after experiencing a heart attack last year. The incident took place in April of 2011 while Hilton Curgenven was sailing aboard the MSC Sinfonia.
The gist of the lawsuit is…
Independence of the Seas – a Dirty Cruise Ship? Sick Passengers Sue Royal Caribbean for £500,000
The U.K.’s Daily Echo reports today that twenty-five ill cruise passengers (and their family members) who sailed aboard the Independence of the Seas filed a lawsuit against the Miami based cruise line, Royal Caribbean Cruises, claiming that the dirty ship conditions and unsanitary galley and food led them to become ill.
The newspaper states that…
Chutzpah: Captain Schettino Sues Costa
Everyone is talking about the disgraced Costa cruise captain Schettino’s outrageous lawsuit against Costa claiming that the cruise line wrongfully terminated his employment.
The outrage is appropriate. After all, this is a captain who interrupted dinner with his mistress only long enough to run his ship into the rocks and kill 32 of his crew and guests and then hop into a lifeboat and leave the…
First Set of Costa Concordia Lawsuits Dismissed
Carnival won its first step in battling lawsuits filed against it arising our of the January 2012 Costa Concordia disaster when a a federal court judge in Florida dismissed a lawsuit filed by Italian businesses against it.
U.S. District Court judge Robin Rosenbaum held that the lawsuits against Carnival should be filed in Italy. 1,000…
Passenger Seriously Burned in Cruise Ship Bar
Newspapers in the U.K. and Australia are covering a horrific story involving a 28 year old man who was reportedly sailing on an Amsterdam "booze cruise" when he awoke in the ship’s bar on fire.
Cruise passenger James Bailey had what he describes as a "few drinks" and fell asleep in the cruise ship’s bar…