Resources

More questions passengers ask

Deadlines, notice and first steps

• How do you give a cruise line written notice of your injury claim? Where to find the notice rule in your ticket, what to include and how to prove you sent it.
• How do you get the cruise line's video before it disappears? The 20-day federal retention rule and what a preservation request should ask for.
• Should you sign a release or accept a future cruise credit after an injury? What a release can give up, and questions to ask before you accept anything.
• Your child was hurt on a cruise: what is different about the claim? The notice pause for minors, who acts for a child and how a settlement is approved.
• A family member died on a cruise: what happens first? Who is notified, the consular report of death and a disappearance at sea.

Proving what happened and who is responsible

• Do you have to prove the cruise line knew about the hazard that hurt you? Actual and constructive notice, and what the Eleventh Circuit requires.
• Is the cruise line responsible for a crew member's careless act? Why a claim about a crew member's own act does not need proof of notice.
• What if you were partly at fault for your cruise injury? How admiralty law treats shared fault, compared with Florida's 50 percent rule.
• How is a cruise injury case different from an ordinary Florida injury case? Deadlines, fault rules and the court, side by side.
• What safety rules does federal law impose on cruise ships? Rail height, cabin security, video, medical care and crime reporting under the federal cruise safety law.

Limits, tickets and claims across borders

• Can a cruise ticket limit how much the cruise line has to pay? Which ticket terms federal law voids and which it allows.
• Can a cruise line use the Limitation of Liability Act against passengers? How a vessel owner's limitation action works and what claimants must do.
• Can you bring a claim if you are not a U.S. resident or your cruise never touched a U.S. port? Why the route matters more than your home country, and when the Athens Convention may apply.
• Can you sue a foreign tour operator in a U.S. court? Florida's long-arm statute, due process and serving a company abroad.

Crimes at sea

• Who investigates a crime on a cruise ship? Which crimes must be reported to the FBI and when U.S. law reaches a foreign-flagged ship.
• What must a cruise ship's medical staff provide after a sexual assault? Medications, a forensic exam, confidentiality and private contact with help.
• Where can you see official cruise ship crime and overboard statistics? The Department of Transportation's quarterly reports and how to read them.

Your case in Miami

• Why does your cruise ticket say you have to sue in Miami? The forum clause, what the Supreme Court decided in Shute and where the federal courthouses are.
• Do you have to travel to Miami for your cruise injury case? Which steps can happen by phone or video and which may need you here.
• How long does a cruise injury lawsuit take in Miami federal court? The court's case tracks, stage deadlines and latest statistics.
• What happens at mediation in a cruise injury case? Court-ordered mediation in Miami: the mediator, the format and confidentiality.
• What happens after you file a cruise injury lawsuit in Miami federal court? Each stage, who does what and what you will be asked to do.

Cost and payment

• How do cruise injury lawyers get paid in Florida? Contingent fee limits, what the contract must say, case costs and the closing statement.