California Boat Accident Attorney Bill Turley teaches lawyers the law. Bill explains the eight Cardinal Rules of California boating law. If you are injured in a boating accident, you and your lawyer need to consider these Maritime law rules.

California Boat Accident Attorney Bill Turley explains the eight Cardinal Rules of California boating law

I am a California boat accident lawyer. I have been handling California boat accident cases since 1986. I am a "Proctor in Admiralty." Also know as a California maritime lawyer. I teach lawyers the law. If you are involved in a boat or ship accident in San Diego, here are some very important considerations.

One of the first things you need to learn is whether your injury occurred on the "navigable waters of the United States." Navigable waters is a term of art which is usually defined as a waterway from which a vessel can travel either to the ocean or from one state to another. The following waters are all considered to be "navigable waters of the United States":

The great ports along the Pacific Coast (San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Wilmington, San Pedro and San Diego Harbor) to the deep inland Delta channels (Sacramento, Stockton, and the California Delta) to the extremely shallow Colorado river (Avi, Parker Strip, Lake Havasu, Blythe, Martinez Lake, Yuma). California’s coast is dotted with small inlets, channels, and marinas. (Crescent City, to Santa Cruz to Santa Barbara, to Power Hueneme, Ventura, Marina del Rey, Newport Harbor, Dana Point, Oceanside Harbor, Chula Vista). And we can’t leave out Lake Tahoe.

Second, maritime law concerns "vessels." All types and classes of vessels are subject to what is known as "admiralty jurisdiction." It is well settled that recreational vessels as well as commercial vessels are subject to "admiralty jurisdiction."

Third, in order for admiralty jurisdiction to be invoked the subject vessel(s) must be "a vessel in navigation." This is also a term of art. There is no requirement that the vessel actually be navigating. For example, a vessel is termed to be “in navigation" tied up to a pier, mooring, or marina.

Fourth, maritime law is very, very different than California State law. We are "maritime lawyers." Every year we see non-maritime lawyers commit legal malpractice in their fumbled attempts to handle a maritime case. Don't be "that guy."

The lawyer you choose to represent you makes all the difference in the outcome of your case. Attorneys at The Turley Law Firm specialize in Boat and Accident / Maritime cases. We not only practice maritime law, we also teach lawyers maritime law. We are Proctors in Admiralty and have been representing people injured on boats and ships since 1986. We understand that your financial future usually depends on the success of your case. We are dedicated to helping our clients get the compensation that they are entitled to under maritime law.

Fifth, don't be fooled by fancy lawyer Internet websites that say that they are "maritime lawyers." I know I see the lawyer websites also. You go on the Internet and search Google for "California maritime attorney" or "San Diego maritime attorney." You will see website after website by lawyers all proclaiming to be California maritime attorneys. We can tell you that 95% of Internet lawyers are not the right fit for your serious maritime injury case. Why?

Law firms say they are maritime lawyers, but they don't really know the first thing about maritime law. In California there is no rule against any lawyer calling themselves experts about anything. So you see lawyers claim to be experts in just about everything: dog bites, amusement park accidents, auto accidents, nursing home litigation, etc. Now you should ask yourself, "How can this lawyer be an expert about all these things and be an expert on boat, ship or maritime accidents"? The short answer is they are not really maritime attorneys.

Ask these Internet lawyers how many maritime cases they have handled? How many maritime trials have they done? You will soon see that they are not really maritime lawyers at all. You need a seasoned maritime lawyer to win your case. Not some lawyer that only “claims” to be a maritime lawyer.

Sixth, many of these law firms are not really from California. While some of these law firms obviously are experienced maritime lawyers - - they are not licensed to practice law in California. The problem here is that these lawyers are either looking for a way to file the case wherever they are from (Houston, Texas, Seattle, New York, wherever....).

Seventh, most maritime cases should be filed in State Court. Conservative federal opinions have really limited an injured person's chances for justice in Federal Court. You have a much better chance for actually winning your case in California State Court. These out of State lawyers are probably not well versed in California law and California civil procedure. My job is to you, the injured person. It is my job to advise you how to win your case. Say what you want about the "why's", even if you might disagree about my rather candid assessment of Federal Courts. The bottom line is you almost always have a better chance of prevailing in California State Court. So that is where we usually file. That being said, there are some times when you have to file in Federal Court. And there are some very good Federal District Judges in California. It is the law that I am concerned about, not the quality of the Judges.

Eight, with "admiralty jurisdiction" comes the application of Federal Maritime Law. Meaning that you are not in Kansas anymore. Literally and figuratively. Federal Maritime Law is just as unforgiving to the unprepared as the sea is to those unprepared. There are various Statutes, procedures, laws, and exceptions to laws. The point being that if you are injured in a boat or ship accident you need to consult with an good honest maritime lawyer. Don't dillydally. Some maritime laws require you to act as soon as 6 months after you are injured.

I realize that you probably don't know a good California boat accident attorney from a bad one, especially by their web sites. Feel free to contact our office. I’ll let you know if you have a real “maritime lawyer’ or an Internet poser. Know this: There are very few good quality maritime lawyers in California. There is only a handful in each major port. And that is it. You don’t want to be a client that calls me after their lawyer loses their case.

Good luck.




The Turley Law Firm Attorneys accept cases in the following locations in California: Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco, Fresno, Long Beach, Sacramento, Oakland, Santa Ana, Anaheim, Bakersfield, Riverside,  El Cajon, Vista, Stockton, Chula Vista, Fremont, Irvine, Modesto, Glendale, San Bernardino, Huntington Beach, Oxnard, Fontana, Moreno Valley, Oceanside, Rancho Cucamonga, Santa Clarita, Garden Grove, Ontario, Pomona, Santa Rosa, Salinas, Palmdale, Hayward, Pasadena, Torrance, Corona, Lancaster, Catalina Island, Bodega Bay, Bethel Island, Half Moon Bay, Eureka, Avalon,  Escondido, Alameda, Orange, Elk Grove, Sunnyvale, Fullerton, Thousand Oaks, El Monte, Simi Valley, Concord, Visalia, Vallejo, Ventura, Ventura Harbor, Marina del Ray, Morro Bay, Inglewood, Santa Clara, Pacific Ocean,  Port of Los Angeles, Port of Long Beach , Port of San Pedro, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Channel, San Clemente Island,  San Joaquin River, San Francisco Harbor, San Francisco Bay, Stockton, Port of Stockton, Port of Sacramento, Port San Luis, California Delta, Lake Tahoe, Colorado River, Port of San Diego, Sausalito, Santa Cruz, San Pedro,  San Diego Harbor, Stockton, Oceanside Harbor, Catalina Island, Dan Point, Newport Harbor, Ventura Harbor, Port Hueneme, Vallejo, Crescent City, Yuba City, Wilmington, and the Channel Islands, and the navigable waterways of the the United States and the navigable waters of California.

The Turley Law Firm handles all type of boat and ship accidents and we are boat accident attorneys, including Jones Act attorneys, unseaworthiness attorneys, boat negligence attorneys, maintenance and cure attorneys,  cruise ship attorneys, recreational boating attorneys, boat accident attorneys, ship accident attorney, boat collision attorney, ship collision attorney, barge accident attorney, barge attorney, derrick attonrey, floating work platform attorney,  PWC accident attorney, personal watercraft accident attorney, sailboat accident attorney, water ski accident attorney, sailing accident attorney,  tanker attorney, offshore attorney,  and river accident attorneys.  Jones Act Attorney,  Jones Act Lawyer, Boating Accident Attorney, Boating Accident Lawyer, LHWCA Lawyer, LHWCA Attorney, Longshore Act Attorney, Longshore Act Lawyer.





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The Turley Law Firm
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San Diego, CA 92101
Phone: (619) 234-2833
Fax: (619) 234-4048
Toll Free: 866-963-0540


The San Diego, California personal injury law firm of The Turley Law Firm serves clients across  Southern California area. We give you straight talk about your legal options. We have handled cases from San Diego to Imperial Beach to Oceanside to Escondido to El Cajon, everywhere in between, such as: Alpine, Camp Pendleton, Cardiff, Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Coronado,  Del Mar, Eastlake, Encinitas, La Mesa, La Costa, La Jolla, Lakeside, Lemon Grove, Mission Bay, NAS San Diego, National City, Naval Station San Diego, North Island, North County, Pacific Beach, Point Loma, Port of San Diego, Poway, Ramona, Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Santa Fe, San Marcos, San Diego Harbor, Santee, Solana Beach, South Bay, Spring Valley, Vista.

We handle cases across California, including: Riverside County, San Bernardino County, Orange County, Imperial County, Los Angeles County, and Ventura County, Colorado River, Mexico, Cabo, Pacific Ocean and all the Oceans and waterways across California and the World.


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