Kevin Lipscomb v. Foss Maritime Company

The shipowner Foss appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the seaman Kevin Lipscomb. The appeal requires us to determine the proper method for determining a seaman’s “unearned wages” for purposes of his entitlement under the general maritime law to maintenance, cure, and unearned wages when taken ill or injured in the service of a ship. We agree with the district court’s conclusion that a seaman is entitled to the compensation he would have earned had he not been injured, to the extent such determination can be made without speculation. Because it is undisputed that the plaintiff, Kevin Lipscomb, would have earned an employment benefit called “accumulated time off’ (“ATO”) in the amount of $955.35 had he not been injured, in addition to his base wage rates, he was entitled to that amount as part of his unearned wages. Accordingly, we affirm the district court’s judgment in favor of Lipscomb in the amount of $955.35.

I.

The essential facts are undisputed. Lipscomb was employed by Foss on the tug JOHN BRIX during October 1993 as an able-bodied seaman. He was employed pursuant to the terms of a collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) between Foss and the…