Many more to come, but will they be successful is anyones guess. I hope they are.
The first hurdle plaintiffs will have to overcome is the language on the tickets, which protects the cruise line from class action lawsuits. If this is upheld, plaintiffs will only be able to sue as individuals, each having to hire their own lawyer. Then comes the Limitation of Liability Act which limits the ship owner’s liability, Death on the High Seas liability restrictions to pecuniary loss by the plaintiff, and finally, the burden of proof of negligence. There are also time and jurisdiction limitations. And of course, since the companies are FOCs, they have an extra layer of protection from US laws.
As for the crews, over 90,000 are virtually held prisoner as their ships loiter off US shores alone.
As expected, Carnivore cruise lines denies all liability:
“Princess Cruises has been sensitive to the difficulties the COVID-19 outbreak has caused to our guests and crew. Our response throughout this process has focused on the well-being of our guests and crew within the parameters dictated to us by the government agencies involved and the evolving medical understanding of this new illness.”
I expect they’ll weather the legal storm and it’ll be back to business as usual within a few years.
I’ve been reluctant to jump on the bandwagon, but that language right there… seriously, fuck them.