James Lett v. Omega Protein, Incorporated

487 F. App'x 839
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
DecidedAugust 6, 2012
Docket11-30985
StatusUnpublished
Cited by8 cases

This text of 487 F. App'x 839 (James Lett v. Omega Protein, Incorporated) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
James Lett v. Omega Protein, Incorporated, 487 F. App'x 839 (5th Cir. 2012).

Opinion

PER CURIAM: *

James Lett brought this admiralty and general maritime lawsuit against his for *841 mer employer, Omega Protein, Inc., and two of Omega’s fishing vessels, the F/V TIGER POINT and the F/V ANNA. Lett asserted negligence claims, unseaworthiness claims, and claims for maintenance and cure. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants and dismissed all of Lett’s claims. Lett appeals the district court’s judgment. For the following reasons, we AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

From 2007 to 2009, James Lett (“Lett”) worked for Omega Protein, Inc. (“Omega”) as a seaman and engineer aboard several of Omega’s fishing vessels. For the 2008 fishing season, Omega employed Lett as the chief engineer aboard the F/V TIGER POINT. As the chief engineer, Lett was responsible for maintaining the engine room, which included chipping off the rust. According to Lett, on September 15, 2008, he spent several hours using a needle gun to chip the rust off of the floor of the engine room, which resulted in injuries to his back and neck. Lett did not report his injuries to Omega.

In January 2009, Lett went to Dr. Stephen West (“Dr. West”) complaining of severe neck pain that radiated down his arm. Dr. West prescribed medication to Lett for his pain. In March 2009, Lett underwent a pre-employment physical. Lett did not tell the examining physician that he had neck pain or that he was taking medication for this pain. After Lett was cleared by the examining physician, Omega employed Lett as the second engineer aboard the F/V ANNA for the 2009 fishing season. As part of his duties, Lett was responsible for lifting hatch covers. According to Lett, this repetitive, heavy lifting aggravated his prior neck and back injuries. Again, Lett failed to report his injuries to Omega.

On September 2, 2010, Lett filed this lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana. In his first amended complaint, Lett alleged that he injured his neck and back by using the needle gun aboard the F/V TIGER POINT on September 15, 2008. He asserted that he “was forced to work approximately 5 hours on his hands and knees to chip away the rust ... using equipment not made for such a job.” He further alleged that he injured his neck and back by “working with hatch covers that were too heavy” aboard the F/V ANNA in 2009. Lett asserted negligence claims against Omega under the Jones Act, 46 U.S.C. § 80104, and he asserted unseaworthiness claims against the F/V TIGER POINT and the F/V ANNA under general maritime law. Lett also sought maintenance and cure for his 2008 and 2009 injuries.

Omega filed a motion for summary judgment, seeking the dismissal of all of Lett’s claims. With regard to the 2008 needle gun incident, Omega argued that it was not negligent because Mike Lombardo (“Lombardo”), Omega’s safety, health, and environment director, testified that using a needle gun is a routine, safe, and simple task that does not require any training. Omega further contended that the F/V TIGER POINT was not unseaworthy because Lett testified that the needle gun was working properly. With regard to the 2009 lifting of hatch covers, Omega argued that it was not negligent because it was the company’s policy that seamen should ask for assistance if they felt something was too heavy to lift, and Lett never asked for help in moving the covers. Also, Ome *842 ga noted that Lett’s expert, Kenneth Kai-gler (“Kaigler”), found that it took only 45 pounds of force to lift the covers. Omega argued that 45-pound lifts do not give rise to claims of negligence or unseaworthiness. Last, Omega argued that, pursuant to McCorpen v. Central Gulf Steamship Corp., 396 F.2d 547 (5th Cir.1968), Lett was not entitled to maintenance and cure for his 2009 injuries. Omega asserted that Lett intentionally concealed medical facts during his pre-hiring examination, that these facts were material to Omega’s decision to hire Lett, and that there was a causal link between Lett’s non-disclosure and his 2009 injuries.

Lett filed a motion in opposition to Omega’s motion for summary judgment. With respect to the needle gun incident, Lett asserted that Omega was negligent in failing to perform a job hazard analysis on the use of a needle gun, in failing to recognize the risks of vibration-related injury from pneumatic tools, and in failing to provide proper training to Lett. Lett argued that the F/V TIGER POINT was rendered un-seaworthy by Omega’s failure to train Lett and by its failure to provide Lett with a larger rust remover that allows' the operator to stand up. With respect to the lifting of hatch covers, Lett maintained that Omega was'negligent in failing to perform a job hazard analysis on repetitive lifting requirements and in failing to enforce safe lifting practices. Lett contended that he was required to lift more than 45 pounds, as the hatch covers weighed an average of 85 pounds, and that these heavy lifts were “in excess of multiple maritime maximum lifting standards.” Lett argued that Omega should have replaced the heavy hatch covers with the lighter, 30-pound covers found on several of Omega’s other vessels. Lett asserted that the unsafe method of lifting the hatch covers rendered the F/V ANNA unseaworthy. Finally, Lett argued that Omega’s McCorpen defense failed because Lett did not intentionally conceal medical facts and because the facts were not material.

On September 19, 2011, the district court entered an order granting Omega’s motion for summary judgment. The court first determined that Omega and the F/V TIGER POINT were entitled to summary judgment on Lett’s negligence and unseaworthiness claims relating to the 2008 needle gun incident. The court noted Lett’s testimony that the needle gun was working properly and that nobody directed him to chip continuously for five hours. The court also noted Lombardo’s testimony that the task of using a needle gun is common and safe in the maritime industry. Lombardo testified that no training is necessary and that he had never heard of any injury resulting from the vibration of a needle gun. The court concluded that “[t]his testimony establishes that Omega was not negligent and the F/V TIGER POINT was not unseaworthy.”

The court next determined that Omega and the F/V ANNA were entitled to summary judgment on Lett’s negligence and unseaworthiness claims relating to the lifting of hatch covers in 2009. The court highlighted Lombardo’s testimony that “at Omega’s orientation, the seamen are instructed to ask for assistance if they cannot lift something.” The court also noted that Kaigler determined that it took only 45 pounds of pressure to lift the hatch covers. The court concluded that Lett did not present “any evidence that Omega was negligent for not replacing the allegedly heavier hatch covers, or that the alleged weight of the hatch covers on the F/V ANNA rendered the vessel unseaworthy.”

Last, the district court determined that Lett was not entitled to maintenance and cure.

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487 F. App'x 839, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/james-lett-v-omega-protein-incorporated-ca5-2012.