Arnold & Itkin Secures $2.8 Million Texas Verdict for Injured Maritime Worker

GALVESTON, Texas, Oct. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Houston trial law firm Arnold & Itkin LLP is announcing a $2.8 million jury verdict handed down Thursday on behalf of a maritime worker who suffered severe injuries while working on an inland barge.

Attorneys Cory Itkin and Jason Itkin represented Jude Lewis in the jury trial heard in Judge Barbara Roberts' County Court No. 2 in Galveston, Texas.

On Nov. 19, 2009, Mr. Lewis was working as a well tester on board the Axxis Justice inland drilling barge in Barataria Bay, La. His work required specialized tools, which were shipped to the barge on a separate vessel that docked alongside. To access the tools, drilling barge operator Axxis Drilling set up a ladder as a makeshift gangway between the vessels. Mr. Lewis fell while attempting to cross the ladder, and suffered serious back and knee injuries.

"Jude is a dedicated, experienced offshore worker who got hurt just trying to do his job," says Jason Itkin. "Axxis Drilling set up an extremely dangerous situation, and we're fortunate that there haven't been more of these serious accidents."

At trial, Mr. Lewis' attorneys successfully argued that Axxis Drilling was negligent for failing to properly train and supervise its crew and failing to provide proper safety equipment and medical care for Mr. Lewis, a resident of Lafayette, La.

"Maritime workers face extremely dangerous situations every day, and too often companies try to get out of any type of responsibility," says Cory Itkin. "Here is another instance where a jury in Galveston County did the right thing to hold a company accountable for its actions."

Axxis Drilling offered no settlement and insisted that the case go to trial. On October 27, 2011, jurors awarded Mr. Lewis $2.795 million after finding that the company's negligence caused his injuries.

The case is Jude Lewis v. Axxis Drilling Inc., et al., No. 63,061.

Arnold & Itkin represents clients in high-stakes cases involving serious personal injury claims, maritime accidents, medical and pharmaceutical injuries, products liability and business disputes. To learn more, visit the firm's Web site at http://www.lawyerforyou.com/.

For more information, please contact Alan Bentrup at 800-559-4534 or [email protected].

SOURCE Arnold & Itkin LLP