Fury Bailey is a Seattle law firm comprised of C. Steven Fury and William S. Bailey. Fury Bailey specializes in Seattle personal injury cases. With years of combined experience, the personal injury attorneys have been partners since 1991. Through years of working together on a variety of cases ranging from product liability and auto accidents to medical negligence and construction accidents; the personal injury attorneys have tried and been victorious in numerous high-profile, precedent-setting cases. http://www.furybailey.com/ Seventy years ago, Clarence Darrow could give an 8-hour closing argument that left the jury spellbound. This was not only because he gave a virtuoso performance, but also because his audience was unconditioned by the verbal and visual shorthand of film and television. http://www.furybailey.com/Articles/TrialAdvocacy/LALaw.html A. Seamen Are Wards of the Admiralty. Seamen are wards of the admiralty to be given special consideration by the federal courts with rules crafted specifically for their protection. We must apply the law of today as we understand it. If it leaves the merchant mariner as the most favored and highly protected of individuals in civilized society, then, so be it. It is likely that the solicitude for the sailor shown by the modern rules arises as much from an understanding of the mariner's life as a precarious one as it is due to any mistake made by the courts in the genesis of these rules. http://www.furybailey.com/Articles/MaritimeLaw/MaritimeLaw.html Injured seamen are not covered by worker's compensation. Rather they are entitled to benefits under maritime law, a form of federal common law, and the Jones Act. Admiralty Courts of the United States have historically looked upon seamen with favor as "wards of the Admiralty." The general maritime laws protecting seamen come to us from antiquity, dating back to the law of the Isle of Rhodes as early as 900 B.C. and through medieval times and the Admiralty courts of England . The attitude of the courts toward injured seamen generally works to their benefit in court, but has an unwanted side effect. Many injured seamen, most doctors and other health professionals who provide them with care, and even employer's representatives charged with administering seamen's benefits, do not understand their rights. http://www.furybailey.com/Articles/MaritimeLaw/InjuredSeamenRights.html A scientific analysis of the body mechanics required in working as a longline fisherman recently led to a settlement for a back injury to a 50 year old fisherman. A contributory factor in the settlement was the uncovering of the strategic maneuvering and manipulation of plaintiff by defendant's self-insurer, leading to an unnecessary surgery prior to plaintiff's representation by counsel. http://www.furybailey.com/Articles/MaritimeLaw/Back_Injury_Maritime_Law.html Construction sites have always been dangerous places to work, with serious injury and death being much more common than in more sedentary occupations. U.S. Department of Labor statistics for 1995 show that 1,000 of the 6,210 on-the-job deaths for that year were in the construction deaths. Some of the reasons for the high injury rates in the construction trades are:1. Extreme time pressure to get the jobs done.2. An industry tradition of only giving lip service to safety.3. Unclear lines of authority for safety on the job.4. Weak or inconsistent state safety inspections.5. Frequent work at heights, or around moving heavy equipment.6. Constant movement of heavy building materials. http://www.furybailey.com/Articles/ConstructionInjuries/SiteInjuries.html Construction sites have always been dangerous places to work, with serious injury and death being much more common than in more sedentary occupations. U.S. Department of Labor statistics for 1995 show that 1,000 of the 6,210 on-the-job deaths for that year were in the construction deaths. Some of the reasons for the high injury rates in the construction trades are: here