Taylor v. B & J Martin, Inc.

• Decision Date: 04 January 2022
• Docket Number: 21-30347
• Parties: Allen Taylor, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. B & J Martin, Incorporated; Rooster Oil & Gas, L.L.C.; Corey T. Gardiner; Lege's Consulting Services, L.L.C.; Starstone Underwriting Limited, On behalf of Lloyd's Syndicate 1301, Incorrectly named as Lloyd's Syndicate 1301 a/k/a Torus Insurance (UK) Limited; Houston Casualty Company, Defendants-Appellees.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

Allen Taylor, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
B & J Martin, Incorporated; Rooster Oil & Gas, L.L.C.; Corey T. Gardiner; Lege's Consulting Services, L.L.C.; Starstone Underwriting Limited, On behalf of Lloyd's Syndicate 1301, Incorrectly named as Lloyd's Syndicate 1301 a/k/a Torus Insurance (UK) Limited; Houston Casualty Company, Defendants-Appellees.

No. 21-30347

United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit

January 4, 2022

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana USDC No. 2:18-cv-8941

Before Jolly, Willett, and Engelhardt, Circuit Judges.

Per Curiam ^[*]

1

Allen Taylor appeals the district court's judgment denying his claim for injuries he sustained in a slip and fall incident while on the vessel, DUSTY DAWN. He argues that the district court, after a bench trial, erred in concluding that B&J Martin did not negligently cause his injuries, that the DUSTY DAWN was seaworthy, and that he was not entitled to additional cure and maintenance. After reviewing the record and the parties' briefs, we AFFIRM on the basis of the district court's findings of fact and conclusions of law.

I.

Defendant B&J Martin contracted with defendants Rooster Oil & Gas and Rooster Oil & Petroleum (collectively, "Rooster") to "perform site clearance trawling" in the Gulf of Mexico. B&J Martin employed Taylor as a captain on the DUSTY DAWN to complete this clearance work. Rooster hired defendant Lege Consulting Services, LLC, to observe this work, and Lege sent Corey Gardiner as its representative.

On October 14, 2015, Taylor woke up around 5 a.m. and got dressed. Particularly relevant, he put on a pair of Crocs, which did not meet B&J Martin's Safety Manual requirements for proper footwear. Around 5:35 a.m., Taylor, wearing the Crocs, stepped out of his living quarters and onto the exterior platform. In doing so, he stepped on a cigarette lighter (later determined to belong to Gardiner), slipped backward, and fell.

Taylor suffered injuries from the fall, and on September 26, 2018, Taylor filed suit to recover for these injuries. He claimed that the defendants had been negligent under the Jones Act, had provided an unseaworthy vessel, and that he was entitled to cure and maintenance. In a second amended complaint, Taylor added the defendants' insurers as defendants themselves.

The district court held a two-day bench trial on April 19-20, 2021. At the conclusion of the trial and after the parties submitted post-trial briefs, on

2

May 24, 2021, the court made its findings of fact and conclusions of law....