Right to Maintenance, Cure & Unearned Wages

If you were injured in “service of the ship,” then you are entitled to general maritime law remedies of (1) maintenance and cure and (2)
recovery of unearned wages. This right may not be contractually waived. De Zon v. American President Lines, 318 U.S. 660 (1943); Cortes v. Baltimore Insular Line, Inc., 287 U.S. 367 (1932). “In service of the ship” can occur ashore or on shore leave.

The exceptions for payment of maintenance and cure benefits are willful misconduct or concealment of a preexisting medical condition. Courtney v. American Seafoods, 42 Fed. Appx. 984 (9th Cir. 2002).

Maintenance is an allowance paid to obtain daily food and lodging. Cure is paid for medical treatment. The right to receive maintenance and cure exists until “maximum medical recovery.” Calmar S.S. v. Taylor, 303 U.S. 525 (1938). Unearned wages are due from the point of injury until the conclusion of a voyage or contract. Farrell v. United States, 336 U.S. 511 (1949); Gardiner v. Sea-LandService, Inc., 786 F. 2d 943 (9th Cir. 1986).

“Maximum medical recovery” (MMI) occurs when it is probable that the injury is permanent and will not improve or is fixed and stable.
Maintenance and cure may not be terminated unless the shipowner provides unequivocal evidence of MMI, or seeks to prove it by a preponderance of the evidence in court. Dean v. Fishing Co. of Alaska, Inc., 177 Wash. 2d 399, 300 P.3d 815 (2013).

See Odom, LexisNexis Practice Guide: Wash. Torts and Personal Injury, Chapter 11. (Matthew Bender, Rev. Ed.).