Leeville Offshore Injury Lawyer

Leeville is the last stop on LA 1 before Port Fourchon — the gateway to the deepwater Gulf. The workers who pass through here crew the supply and crew boats, service the platforms, and keep the offshore energy industry running from the southernmost edge of Lafourche Parish. It is about as offshore as work gets, and the risks match. When a worker is hurt out here, the company’s insurer starts protecting the company immediately.

Kopfler & Hermann has represented injured South Louisiana workers since 1977. We know Port Fourchon, the vessels and platforms it serves, and the maritime law that governs offshore injuries. Call (985) 851-3311 for a free, confidential consultation — no fee unless we win.

Why Offshore Injury Cases Are Different

An offshore injury is not an ordinary “work accident.” Depending on where you were and what you were doing when you were hurt, your claim may fall under federal maritime law — not the Louisiana workers’ compensation system most people expect. Getting this wrong can cost an injured worker their recovery. The main frameworks are:

  • The Jones Act — lets an injured seaman (a crew member with a substantial connection to a vessel in navigation) sue the employer for negligence — the employer’s, the captain’s, or a coworker’s. It generally allows a fuller recovery than state workers’ comp.
  • Unseaworthiness — a separate general-maritime claim against the vessel owner when the vessel, its equipment, or its crew were not reasonably fit for their purpose. Seamen often bring it alongside a Jones Act claim.
  • The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) — a federal no-fault system covering many dock, harbor, and some platform workers who are not seamen. Its deadlines are much shorter than the Jones Act’s.
  • The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) — can govern injuries on fixed platforms on the Outer Continental Shelf off the Louisiana coast, sometimes borrowing Louisiana law.

What Compensation Can an Injured Worker Recover?

Every case is different, and no honest lawyer can promise a number. What the law allows an injured seaman or offshore worker to pursue generally includes:

  • Past and future medical care
  • Lost wages and lost future earning capacity
  • Maintenance and cure — basic daily-living support and medical care while you recover, owed to injured seamen regardless of who was at fault
  • Pain, suffering, and mental anguish
  • Disability and disfigurement

Deadlines: Don’t Assume You Have Three Years

Offshore and maritime claims run on federal deadlines, and which one applies depends on your job and where you were hurt:

  • Jones Act (seamen): generally three years from the date of injury (46 U.S.C. § 30106).
  • LHWCA (many dock, harbor, and platform workers): far shorter — you generally must report the injury within 30 days and file a claim within one year.

That gap is exactly how workers lose good cases: someone assumes they have three years when they were really under the one-year LHWCA clock the whole time. On top of that, vessels get repaired, logs get overwritten, and crews rotate off. The sooner we’re involved, the more of your case we can protect. Don’t guess which deadline is yours — call us and we’ll tell you.

What to Do After an Offshore or Maritime Injury

We know the reality: you may be offshore or on the water, you can’t always reach a lawyer right away, and the company will want a report fast. Here’s how to protect yourself:

  1. Report the injury right away to your captain, company man, or supervisor. You usually have to — and you should. Make sure it’s written down and reflects what actually happened.
  2. Keep your report factual and simple: what happened, when, and where. Don’t guess at the cause, don’t blame yourself, and don’t minimize the injury — “I think I’m okay” gets quoted back to you later.
  3. Be careful past the basic incident report. If a company claims adjuster or insurer wants a formal recorded interview, or hands you a written statement to sign that assigns fault or downplays your injury, it’s fair to say you’ll follow up after you’ve spoken with a lawyer. That’s normal — not difficult.
  4. Don’t sign a release or settlement, or anything beyond authorization for immediate medical treatment, without having it reviewed.
  5. Get medical care and follow the treatment plan — for your health and your record.
  6. Ask for a copy of the incident report, and note the vessel, rig, or location, the conditions, and who witnessed it.
  7. Call Kopfler & Hermann as soon as you can. The important thing is that you call before you sign anything or give a recorded statement to the insurer.

Cases We Handle for Leeville Workers

  • Crew boat, supply vessel, and work boat accidents
  • Deckhand, mariner, and able-seaman injuries
  • Jack-up rig, drilling rig, and platform accidents
  • Shipyard, fabrication, and vessel-repair injuries
  • Crane, winch, and heavy-equipment accidents
  • Slip, trip, and fall on deck, ladders, and gangways
  • Falling object and dropped-load injuries
  • Fires, explosions, and burn injuries
  • Back, neck, and spinal injuries from lifting and heavy seas
  • Catastrophic injuries and offshore wrongful death claims

Serving Leeville & South Louisiana

Our Houma office represents injured offshore workers and mariners across the Fourchon corridor and South Louisiana, including Leeville, Golden Meadow, Galliano, Cut Off, and the crews shipping out of Port Fourchon. If you can’t come to us, we’ll come to you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Am I a “seaman” under the Jones Act?

Generally, if you have a substantial connection to a vessel (or a fleet of vessels) in navigation and contribute to its work — courts often look at whether you spend roughly 30% or more of your time aboard — you may qualify as a seaman. It’s a fact-specific question, and one the company’s insurer has every incentive to answer in its favor. We look at it independently and honestly.

I had to give a statement before I could call anyone. Did I hurt my case?

Almost certainly not. Injured workers nearly always have to give an incident report before they can reach a lawyer, and that’s expected. What matters most is what you signed and whether an insurer later got a recorded statement out of you. Bring us whatever you have or remember — the time to be careful is now, with the adjuster’s recorded interview and any settlement paperwork.

The company doctor cleared me but I’m still hurting. What now?

You generally have the right to seek your own medical evaluation. A company-selected doctor is not the last word on your health or your case.

How much does it cost to hire you?

Nothing up front. We handle these claims on a contingency basis — no fee unless we recover for you. Consultations are free.

My injury happened way offshore on the Outer Continental Shelf. Where would my case even be handled?

That’s exactly the kind of question that trips workers up. Depending on whether you were on a vessel or a fixed platform, your claim may fall under the Jones Act, the LHWCA, or OCSLA — and each has different rules and deadlines. We handle that analysis so you don’t lose rights by guessing.

Call a Leeville Injury Lawyer Today

Don’t let the company decide what your injury is worth. Call Kopfler & Hermann at (985) 851-3311 for a free, confidential consultation. We’ll listen, answer your questions honestly, and tell you whether we believe you have a case worth pursuing. No pressure. No fee unless we win.

Kopfler & Hermann, Attorneys at Law — Helping Houma and the bayou since 1977
306 Grinage St, Houma, LA 70360 · (985) 851-3311

This page provides general information about Louisiana and federal maritime law and is not legal advice. Deadlines and rights vary by the specific facts of each case. Contact Kopfler & Hermann at (985) 851-3311 to discuss your situation. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Offshore & Maritime Injury Lawyers — Nearby Communities We Serve

Kopfler & Hermann represents injured offshore, oilfield, and maritime workers across South Louisiana. If your community isn’t listed here, call us anyway — we serve the whole bayou region. Start with our Houma Maritime & Offshore Injury Lawyer hub, or choose a nearby community: