According to experts in maritime and personal injury law, there is likely to be a deluge of personal injury lawsuits against the city. Legal experts say that almost everyone who boarded the ferry may have a legal case for compensation against the city, which owns and operates the ferry service.
In addition to possible compensation for those who died or were seriously injured, a federal maritime doctrine allows all those who were in the face of danger and who suffered emotional distress to file for compensation, even if they were not physically injured, a legal expert said.
"It looks like a case that the city can't beat, except for the possibility of limiting their liability," said Paul Edelman, a specialist in maritime law at the firm of Kreindler & Kreindler. He also writes a column on admiralty issues for The New York Law Journal. "On the face of it," he said, "it looks like the liability is pretty good."
The New York Times reports the story here, including news of a claim already filed and an admonition from the New York State Bar Association reminding lawyers "'to adhere to the code of professional responsibility.' The code prohibits lawyers from soliciting work from the injured or from pressuring survivors to sue, among other things.'"