Any good personal injury firm will offer you the compassion and professionalism you need during this difficult time. The members of your legal team should also communicate well with each other and with you so that you understand what’s happening with your case every step of the way. You should be able to quickly contact the firm when you need legal counsel or have questions about specific aspects
of your case, and they should be able to provide clear answers and sound advice. And, of course, the lawyers at the firm need to be well-versed in the intricacies of maritime law and cruise ship accident cases to provide you with the best possible chance of winning your case and getting the compensation you deserve. Madeleine Q. Mannello, P.A. prides itself on striving to meet or exceed all those qualifications. Our talented team members are passionate about serving clients who have suffered cruise ship injuries. All our partners and Of Counsel Mark J. Leeds are qualified to practice maritime law in Florida. In fact, we collectively have more than 70 years of experience handling cruise ship injury cases like yours. We know that cruise lines have a duty of care to their passengers and crew, and if they fail to live up to that standard, they must be held accountable. We have experience in cases against popular cruise lines like:
Carnival
Disney
Royal Caribbean
Princess Cruises
Holland America
Norwegian
MSC
We also handle many other types of cases. If you would like to learn more about our practice, you can contact Madeleine Q. What kind of injuries can you suffer on a cruise? Essentially, you can suffer all the same injuries on land but with added risks because passengers and crew members are exposed to risk factors they would not face at home. Accidents that have occurred on cruises include:
Slip and falls. Wet decks and tripping hazards in high-traffic areas can cause passengers to fall and injure themselves. The narrow staircases on some cruise ships can also pose a risk, and those who fall may suffer brain trauma, a back or neck injury, spinal cord injury, broken bones, or internal bleeding. Shore excursion accidents. Cruise lines often claim that there are inherent risks to shore excursions and that passengers must assume responsibility for accidents, but there are situations where the cruise line itself may be at fault. Suppose crew members fail to inspect the equipment, follow activity regulations, or warn passengers about the potential risks of cruise-sponsored shore excursions, like ziplining or parasailing. In that case, the cruise line may be liable for any accident. Medical negligence. The medical attention you receive on a cruise ship will not be the same as in a hospital, and some cruise lines don’t require their doctors to be licensed to practice medicine in the United States. Furthermore, cruise line infirmaries often lack the staff and resources to give all sick or injured passengers the necessary attention. It’s all too easy for a harried ship doctor to misdiagnose a problem, which can lead to serious complications for you. Norovirus. This virus that causes gastrointestinal distress spreads quickly from person to person, can survive outside of a host for three weeks or more, and is increasingly becoming a problem for cruise ships. Norovirus outbreaks in early 2014 infected hundreds of people aboard at least three different vessels, forcing the ships to return to port early after sick passengers overwhelmed the infirmary and made each ship an unsanitary environment.
