Putative Damages now Available Under the Jones Act
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On June 25, 2009 The United States Supreme Court held in Atlantic Sounding Co. v. Townsend, 2009 WL 1789469 (U.S. June 25, 2009), that:
"Because punitive damages have long been an accepted remedy under general maritime law, and because nothing in the Jones Act altered this understanding, such damages for the willful and wanton disregard of the maintenance and cure obligation should remain available in the appropriate case as a matter of general maritime law."
This means that claims filed under the Jones Act are not barred from requesting putative damages. Initially, in Miles v. Apex Marine Corp., 498 U.S. 19 1990, the Supreme Court held that:
“The Jones Act, which applies to deaths of true seamen as a result of negligence, allows recovery only for pecuniary loss and not for loss of society in a wrongful death action under the Jones Act or any of this Court's other decisions interpreting the statute."
This meant that wrongful deaths actions filed under this act were eligible solely for lost wages that occurred during the decedent’s lifetime. The more recent decision handed down by the Supreme Court in Atlantic Sounding now allows for families to include putative damages for injuries that occur as a result of wanton disregard or failure to cure ship maintenance issues.
The decision, while recent is controversial. Opposers contend that this ruling will open a floodgate to include putative damages to maritime claims, which is something that was not previously available.