Maintenance and Cure Lawyers in Georgia & South Carolina
Maintenance and cure is one of the oldest remedies in maritime law — a doctrine dating back centuries that requires vessel owners and employers to provide injured or ill seamen with daily living expenses (“maintenance”) and medical treatment (“cure”) until the seaman reaches maximum medical improvement (MMI). Unlike Jones Act negligence or unseaworthiness claims, maintenance and cure is an absolute right — it does not require proof of employer negligence, and the seaman is entitled to benefits regardless of who was at fault for the injury.
At Roden Law, our maintenance and cure lawyers represent injured seamen throughout Georgia and South Carolina who have been denied or underpaid the maintenance and cure they are legally entitled to. We fight to ensure seamen receive proper medical care and adequate living expenses during their recovery.
What Is Maintenance?
Maintenance is a daily stipend intended to cover the seaman’s basic living expenses while recovering from an injury or illness. It is the maritime equivalent of what the seaman would have received in room and board while aboard the vessel:
- Housing costs: Rent, mortgage payments, or fair rental value of the seaman’s home
- Food expenses: Reasonable daily food costs
- Utilities: Electricity, water, gas, and other basic utilities
While courts have historically set maintenance at modest daily rates ($25–$50/day was once common), more recent decisions recognize that the rate should reflect the seaman’s actual reasonable living expenses. Our attorneys fight for maintenance rates that genuinely cover our clients’ costs rather than accepting inadequate flat rates offered by employers.
What Is Cure?
Cure is the employer’s obligation to provide all reasonable and necessary medical treatment related to the seaman’s injury or illness until the seaman reaches maximum medical improvement (MMI):
- Scope: All medical treatment, including doctor visits, hospitalization, surgery, physical therapy, prescription medications, diagnostic testing, and medical equipment
- Duration: Until MMI — the point at which further treatment will not improve the seaman’s condition. Importantly, MMI does not mean the seaman is fully recovered — only that the condition has stabilized
- Choice of physician: While employers may initially direct medical care, seamen have the right to choose their own treating physicians if the employer’s chosen doctors provide inadequate care
- No cost to seaman: The employer pays 100% of medical costs — there are no copays, deductibles, or coverage limits
When Employers Wrongfully Deny Maintenance and Cure
Despite maintenance and cure being an absolute right, employers and their insurers frequently deny or delay these benefits. Common tactics include:
- Claiming pre-existing condition: Arguing the injury or illness existed before employment (however, maintenance and cure is owed even if a pre-existing condition is aggravated by service)
- Disputing seaman status: Claiming the worker does not qualify as a seaman
- Premature MMI determinations: Sending the seaman to employer-selected doctors who declare MMI prematurely, cutting off benefits
- Inadequate maintenance rates: Offering maintenance at rates far below actual living expenses
- Surveillance and investigation: Using private investigators to challenge the validity of the seaman’s injuries
Penalties for Bad-Faith Denial
The Supreme Court’s decision in Atlantic Sounding Co. v. Townsend (2009) confirmed that punitive damages are available when an employer willfully and arbitrarily denies maintenance and cure. Additionally, the Vaughan v. Atkinson (1962) line of cases established that compensatory damages, including attorney’s fees, are recoverable when maintenance and cure is unreasonably denied. This creates a powerful deterrent against employer bad faith.
Maintenance and Cure Alongside Other Maritime Claims
Maintenance and cure exists independently of, and in addition to, other maritime remedies. An injured seaman may simultaneously receive maintenance and cure benefits while pursuing a Jones Act negligence claim and an unseaworthiness claim. The maintenance and cure obligation begins immediately upon injury and continues regardless of the outcome of any negligence or unseaworthiness litigation.
Statute of Limitations
Maintenance and cure claims are subject to the federal maritime doctrine of laches, which functions similarly to a statute of limitations. Courts generally apply a 3-year limitations period. However, each day that maintenance and cure is wrongfully withheld may constitute a separate breach, extending the period for recovery of unpaid benefits.
