BLOOD ON BROWN WATER, Continued Chapter 3, No.7a



 Heading for court:
   As Tidewater continued to dither and delay, the lawsuit moved closer to a showdown in Federal District Court in New Orleans. As a large corporation, Tide Water has access to the best legal talent money can buy. However, when the case reaches court, the facts of a case and the law become determining factors. Issues that can have a monetary value are tagged with a dollar amount.

 An attorney must always seek the best possible settlement for his client. In doing so, he may have to make all sorts of compromises based on his best legal judgement as to how his case is developing. In many cases, the defendant (e.g. Tidewater) will make a settlement offer. If that offer is acceptable to the plaintiff (e.g.,Preston Joseph) then the case will be settled and dismissed by the judge.

Out of Court Settlements Receive Little 
Publicity:

 All that appears in the public record is the "dismissal" of a lawsuit rather than any mention of an "out of court settlement". As far as any publicity is concerned ,most private cases involving mariners receive little or no attention from the press because the general public couldn't possibly care less. As part of an "out of court settlement", the defendant may include a stipulation (i.e. agreement) that the terms of the settlement not be revealed. Since the settlement is not recorded in the court record, neither Preston nor his attorney can reveal the amount. That settles any curiosity about the "pot of gold" at the end of the rainbow. As a result of out-of-court settlement, Tidewater was never "found guilty" of anything.  They can trumpet this fact to their heart's content.

Our Association Assesses the "Pot of Gold"

 Yes, Preston won...but it was no "cake walk" in spite of the number of legal precedents cited by his attorney. We believe that the settlement was deemed "satisfactory" to cover Preston's expenses and his needs. No matter what the amount (which is certainly none of our business), through what we learned from the public record and as the case progressed , was that the pain and suffering was intense and continuous.  We feel that and wish to convey that fact first and foremost to our readers. Not only was there physical pain and suffering but also the aggravation of dealing with a large corporation that aggressively delayed making a reasonable settlement.  As a result , a considerable portion of Tidewater's expensive settlement was a direct result of their own failure to come to grips with their corporate responsibility to care for their injured mariner and to treat him fairly. Preston's attorney skillfully outlined the legal precedents in papers filed with the court and cited in our heading.

To be continued:  The next installment of Chapter 3 will introduce the reader to "Herman Newton vs Versatility Marine, LLC, a case illustrating what happens to work boat seamen who are exposed to and catch a deadly disease aboard their vessel.