The Perazzo Law Firm · Cruise wrongful death claims filed in Miami
Cruise Ship Wrongful Death Lawyer
The personal injury accident lawyer in Miami, Jonathan Perazzo, knows that losing a family member on a cruise is devastating, and the law that applies is not what most families expect. If your loved one died more than three nautical miles from shore, a federal statute called DOHSA controls the claim — and it generally limits recovery to economic loss only. The cruise line’s ticket contract deadline still applies. We help families understand what the law allows, and act before the deadline closes.
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Cruise ship wrongful death attorneys
Where your loved one died decides which law applies — and what you can recover.
The ticket contract your loved one accepted when they booked did not stop applying because they did not survive. Federal law — 46 U.S.C. § 30526 — sets a floor on how little time a cruise line may give before a claim is barred, and death claims are covered by it the same as injury claims. Carnival’s published ticket contract requires written notice within 185 days and suit filed within one year; Royal Caribbean’s guest ticket contract requires notice within six months, suit filed within one year, and the lawsuit served within 120 days after filing. There is one meaningful difference for a death claim: under § 30526(d), the contractual notice period is tolled until the earlier of the appointment of a legal representative for the estate or three years after the death — but that tolling reaches only the notice period, not, on its face, the one-year period to bring suit. Do not assume you have more time than the contract actually gives.
Where your loved one died then decides which law governs the claim itself — and this is the fact most families are never told. If the death occurred on the high seas, beyond three nautical miles from the shore of the United States, the federal Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) applies under 46 U.S.C. § 30302, and 46 U.S.C. § 30303 limits recovery to the family’s pecuniary loss — not the loss of a parent’s or spouse’s companionship. If the death occurred within three nautical miles of shore, in a port, or in a state’s territorial waters, 46 U.S.C. § 30308 keeps DOHSA from displacing state law, and Florida’s Wrongful Death Act may apply instead, with a broader menu of damages. The location of the death is not a background detail. It is the fact that shapes the entire claim.
The Perazzo Law Firm handles cruise ship wrongful death claims from our office in North Miami Beach, the same city both Carnival’s and Royal Caribbean’s ticket contracts designate as the forum for U.S. passenger injury and death lawsuits. Only the deceased passenger’s personal representative may bring a DOHSA claim, for the exclusive benefit of the spouse, parent, child, or dependent relative — a status that itself takes time to establish, which is one more reason to start early. Attorney Jonathan Perazzo, licensed in Florida, Georgia, and Texas, works with families on a contingency basis: no fee unless we recover for you. We will explain, plainly and without speculation, what the law allows in your family’s situation — call before a deadline closes.
How a cruise ship death claim actually works
Three facts that control your claim — and none of them is what most families assume.
- ✓The ticket contract deadline still applies to a death claim. Federal law — 46 U.S.C. § 30526 — sets a floor on how little time a cruise line may give a passenger to give notice and to sue, and it applies to death claims the same as it applies to injury claims. Carnival’s published ticket contract requires written notice within 185 days and suit filed within one year; Royal Caribbean’s guest ticket contract requires notice within six months, suit filed within one year, and the suit served within 120 days after filing. Section 30526(d) tolls the contractual notice period for a wrongful death claim until the earlier of a legal representative being appointed or three years after the death — but that provision tolls notice only. On its face, it does not extend the one-year period in § 30526(b)(2) to bring suit. Treat the shorter number as the one that governs.
- ✓Where the death occurred determines whether DOHSA or state law applies. 46 U.S.C. § 30302 makes the federal Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) apply “when the death of an individual is caused by wrongful act, neglect, or default occurring on the high seas beyond 3 nautical miles from the shore of the United States.” If the death happened farther out than that line, DOHSA governs, and only the decedent’s personal representative may bring the action, for the exclusive benefit of the spouse, parent, child, or dependent relative. If the death happened within three nautical miles of shore, in a port, or in a state’s territorial waters, 46 U.S.C. § 30308 keeps DOHSA from displacing state law — and Florida’s Wrongful Death Act may apply instead, with a broader menu of recoverable damages. Establishing exactly where the vessel was is one of the first things a case requires.
- ✓If DOHSA applies, recovery is limited to pecuniary loss — not loss of companionship. 46 U.S.C. § 30303 limits DOHSA recovery to “fair compensation for the pecuniary loss sustained” by the family. In Mobil Oil Corp. v. Higginbotham, 436 U.S. 618 (1978), the Supreme Court held that DOHSA survivors are “not entitled to recover additional damages under general maritime law for ‘loss of society,’” explaining plainly: “Congress has struck the balance for us.” In practice this means a DOHSA claim generally compensates the financial loss the family has suffered — not the grief, and not the companionship that has been lost. This is not a technicality; it changes the shape and value of the claim, and it is worth understanding clearly rather than discovering later.
The distinction the whole claim turns on
“Congress has struck the balance for us.”Under Mobil Oil Corp. v. Higginbotham, 436 U.S. 618 (1978), a DOHSA wrongful death claim is generally limited to the family’s pecuniary loss — not loss of society or companionship. Where your loved one died decides whether that limitation applies at all.
How these claims arise
How a wrongful death claim can arise on a cruise ship.
The circumstances of a death at sea determine which legal theory applies — and in some circumstances, whether the family has to prove the cruise line had notice of a danger at all.
- •Falls or hazardous conditions on the ship. Wet decks, unmarked thresholds, and stairways — the kind of conditions at issue in Keefe v. Bahama Cruise Line, Inc., 867 F.2d 1318 (11th Cir. 1989), where notice generally has to be proven.
- •Crew negligence. Under Yusko v. NCL (Bahamas), Ltd., 4 F.4th 1164 (11th Cir. 2021), a death caused by a crew member’s own negligence does not require proof that the cruise line had notice of a risk-creating condition.
- •Onboard medical negligence. Franza v. Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd., 772 F.3d 1225 (11th Cir. 2014), allows a cruise line to be held vicariously liable for the negligence of its onboard medical staff.
- •Assault or other intentional acts. Doe v. Celebrity Cruises, Inc., 394 F.3d 891 (11th Cir. 2004), holds that under federal maritime law a cruise line is strictly liable for crew member assaults on passengers during the cruise, so advance notice is not an element of the claim.
- •Overboard incidents. Where and when a passenger went overboard is often the central factual dispute — and it is frequently also the fact that decides whether DOHSA or state law applies.
- •Crew member deaths. A seaman’s death is generally governed by the Jones Act, 46 U.S.C. § 30104(a), with its own three-year limitations period under 46 U.S.C. § 30106 — a different clock from the passenger ticket contract.
In the days that follow
What has to be documented before it disappears.
A grieving family does not think first about a ship’s GPS log. But in a cruise wrongful death case, the facts that decide everything are recorded in places that will not stay available forever.
- ✓Where the ship was when the death occurred. The vessel’s own log and GPS position at the time of death can determine whether DOHSA or Florida law governs the claim.
- ✓The cruise line’s official incident report. Ships generate an internal report for any onboard death. Ask for a copy, and keep in mind it was not written for your family’s benefit.
- ✓Medical records from the ship’s infirmary. What onboard medical staff observed, recorded, and did — and how quickly — becomes part of the record from the moment it happens.
- ✓The death certificate, and any autopsy performed. These establish cause of death and are frequently required before a personal representative can be appointed.
- ✓Video coverage of the area. Modern ships are heavily monitored, and retention windows are not indefinite — footage can be gone within weeks without a formal preservation demand.
- ✓Witness identities. Other passengers who saw what happened scatter to different states and countries the moment the ship docks; names and cabin numbers taken onboard are often the only way to find them again.
Before you speak further with the cruise line, and before you sign anything, get legal advice. A guest-relations representative may call within days of the death, and a settlement conversation can arrive in the same call as condolences. Nothing requires your family to respond right away, and nothing about grief should be treated as a deadline by the other side.
Know their playbook
What the cruise line is doing while your family grieves.
Cruise lines are sophisticated, repeat litigants defending in their home court, and a death claim does not slow them down. Expect:
- Running out the clock. The contract deadline keeps running during probate, grief, and the process of becoming the legal personal representative. Families who assume they have years, rather than months, lose that time.
- Contesting exactly where the death occurred. Because DOHSA generally limits recovery to pecuniary loss, whether the vessel was on one side or the other of the three-nautical-mile line under 46 U.S.C. § 30302 can become a heavily contested fact.
- “We had no notice of the condition.” The Keefe defense: if the claim involves a hazardous condition rather than a crew member’s own act, the cruise line will argue it did not know and could not have known.
- An early condolence call that comes with a release. A claims representative reaching out with sympathy — and, not far behind it, a settlement offer or a future-cruise credit, before the family has any idea what the claim is actually worth.
- Letting the evidence age out. Video, logs, and prior incident reports at the same location exist, and none of it is being preserved for your family’s benefit unless someone formally demands it.
The counter is speed: written notice inside the contract deadline, a preservation demand for the video and the logs, and moving promptly to establish who is the legal personal representative entitled to bring the claim.
Cases we handle
Cruise ship wrongful death cases we handle.
How and where a death occurred changes which legal theory applies — and, under DOHSA, it can change what the family is even entitled to recover.
Falls, hazardous conditions & notice claims
Deaths tied to a wet deck, an unmarked threshold, or a worn stairway, where Keefe and Holland v. Carnival Corp., 50 F.4th 1088 (11th Cir. 2022), govern whether notice can be proven.
Crew-caused deaths
Where a crew member’s own negligence caused the death, Yusko means the family does not have to prove the cruise line had notice of anything.
Onboard medical negligence deaths
Deaths tied to the care, or lack of care, provided by a ship’s medical staff, under the vicarious-liability rule of Franza v. Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd.
Assault & intentional-act deaths
Deaths resulting from a crewmember’s intentional act, governed by the strict-liability rule of Doe v. Celebrity Cruises, Inc., 394 F.3d 891 (11th Cir. 2004).
Overboard incidents
Deaths where a passenger went overboard, where establishing the vessel’s position is often the threshold question for the entire claim.
Crew member (Jones Act) deaths
A seaman’s death, governed by 46 U.S.C. § 30104(a) with a three-year limitations period under § 30106 — a different clock from a passenger’s ticket contract.
Our approach
How we build a cruise ship wrongful death case.
This is not one legal question. It is several, in sequence — the deadline, the location, the representative, the theory, and only then the value.
- ✓We protect the contract deadline first. We identify the carrier’s ticket contract and calendar the notice and suit dates immediately. Section 30526(d) can toll the notice period for a death claim — but we do not treat the one-year suit deadline as extended unless a court has said so.
- ✓We work to establish where the death occurred. The vessel’s GPS position and log entries at the time of death are requested early, because that fact determines whether DOHSA or Florida’s Wrongful Death Act governs the claim.
- ✓We help the family become the legal personal representative. Only a personal representative may bring a DOHSA claim, for the exclusive benefit of the spouse, parent, child, or dependent relative. Getting that status in place is a necessary early step, not paperwork to handle later.
- ✓We demand preservation of the video and the ship’s records immediately. Cleaning logs, deck inspection rounds, medical records, and video are the raw material of a notice case — and retention windows are short.
- ✓We plead the theory that fits the facts. A notice case under Keefe, a vicarious liability case under Yusko or Franza, or an intentional-act case under Doe v. Celebrity Cruises — the facts decide which theory applies, and more than one can sometimes be pleaded.
- ✓We calculate what the applicable law actually allows. If DOHSA governs, that generally means pecuniary loss — lost financial support, lost services, and funeral expenses. If Florida law governs instead, a broader menu of damages may be available. We explain which law applies to your family’s facts before we explain what it may be worth.
- ✓We prepare the case for the forum the contract chose. For Carnival and Royal Caribbean passengers, that is the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami. Federal maritime wrongful death litigation has its own rhythm, and a file built for it from day one is worth more than one assembled at the end.
What a claim may include
What a cruise ship wrongful death claim may include.
What is recoverable depends entirely on which law applies to your family’s claim — and that, in turn, depends on where the death occurred. Nothing below is a promise; it describes the categories the law recognizes.
- ✓Loss of financial support. The income and financial contribution the decedent would have provided to the spouse, children, or dependent relatives named in the claim.
- ✓Loss of services. The value of household and caretaking contributions the decedent provided, recoverable as part of the family’s pecuniary loss.
- ✓Funeral and burial expenses. Reasonable costs the family incurred as a direct result of the death.
- ✓Medical expenses before death, where applicable. Costs incurred for treatment between the incident and the death, where the facts support them.
- ✓What DOHSA generally does not allow. Under Mobil Oil Corp. v. Higginbotham, 436 U.S. 618 (1978), DOHSA survivors are not entitled to damages for loss of society or companionship. That limitation is specific to DOHSA claims.
- ✓If Florida’s Wrongful Death Act applies instead. For deaths within three nautical miles of shore or in state waters, 46 U.S.C. § 30308 preserves state law, and Florida’s statute may allow a broader menu of damages than DOHSA does. Which law applies is a threshold question, not an assumption.
Every family’s claim depends on its own facts, and no outcome can be predicted or guaranteed. Be cautious of any early settlement offer or future-cruise credit that arrives before your family has determined where the death occurred, who the legal personal representative is, and which law applies — each of those facts affects what the claim may be worth.
Why Perazzo
Built for trial. Not the quick settlement.
- ✓An attorney — not a call center. Jonathan Perazzo handles your case personally, start to finish.
- ✓Trial-ready, always. We prepare every case for court, which strengthens every negotiation.
- ✓Determined negotiation. We don’t accept the first offer or let insurers set the terms.
- ✓No fee unless we recover. Zero upfront cost — se habla español, available 24/7.
Your attorney
Jonathan Perazzo
Founding Attorney
Jonathan works with families personally on cruise wrongful death claims. Two things govern such a claim from the outset: the calendar and the location. Which cruise line, what the ticket contract requires, and — as precisely as the family or the ship’s own records can establish — where the vessel was when the death occurred, because that fact decides whether DOHSA or Florida law applies. From there the work is both evidentiary and procedural: demanding preservation of the ship’s video and logs, helping the family become the legal personal representative required to bring the claim, and determining which theory of liability — notice under Keefe, vicarious liability under Yusko or Franza, or an intentional act under Doe v. Celebrity Cruises — fits the facts.
Written and reviewed by attorney Jonathan Perazzo, licensed in Georgia, Florida, and Texas.
Our process
Four steps, no cost to start.
- Free case review. Tell us what happened — no cost, no obligation.
- Investigation & case-building. We gather the report, evidence, and records, and build your file for trial.
- Documented demand. We present a documented demand and press for full value.
- Trial-ready resolution. If the insurer won’t be fair, we’re prepared to take them to court.
After a death on a cruise ship
What to do after a cruise ship death.
- Get the official incident report from the cruise line. Ask guest services or the ship’s security department for a written report, and request a copy for your family’s records.
- Try to determine where the ship was when the death occurred. Ask the cruise line for the vessel’s position or GPS log at the time. This single fact can determine which law applies to your claim.
- Obtain the death certificate. This document is often required before a personal representative can be appointed and before a claim can formally proceed.
- Begin the process of becoming the legal personal representative. Only a personal representative may bring a DOHSA wrongful death claim on the family’s behalf. This step takes time, so start it early.
- Find the ticket contract and read the notice and suit provisions. The notice deadline can be as short as 185 days, suit as short as one year, with 120 days to serve after filing — and only the notice period may be tolled for a death claim.
- Do not sign anything or accept a settlement or cruise credit yet. An early release can end the claim permanently, before your family knows where the death occurred or what the claim is worth.
- Contact a cruise ship wrongful death lawyer promptly. The deadlines that apply to your family’s claim are short, and they do not pause for grief.
Local knowledge
Why a cruise ship wrongful death case belongs in Miami.
This is one of the few practice areas where a firm’s location is a legal fact, not a marketing claim. The passenger ticket contracts of the two largest cruise lines send injury and death lawsuits to one place, and it is here:
- •Carnival’s contract designates Miami. Clause 14(c) requires suit “before the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami,” or where that court lacks subject matter jurisdiction, a court in Miami-Dade County.
- •Royal Caribbean’s contract designates Miami too. Its guest terms route U.S. cruise claims to the Southern District of Florida in Miami-Dade, with written notice to its Miami address at 1050 Caribbean Way.
- •The cruise lines are based here. Royal Caribbean directs written notice of injury claims to its Miami address at 1050 Caribbean Way, and Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings lists its corporate office in Miami, Florida. The witnesses, the corporate records, and the defense firms are local.
- •PortMiami is the departure point for millions. PortMiami reported 8,564,225 cruise passengers in its most recently reported fiscal year — and the ticket contracts those passengers accept at booking designate this district for U.S. passenger injury suits.
Forum selection clauses in cruise tickets are generally enforceable. In Carnival Cruise Lines, Inc. v. Shute, 499 U.S. 585 (1991), the Supreme Court enforced one against passengers who had never negotiated it — while emphasizing that such clauses “are subject to judicial scrutiny for fundamental fairness.” One caution: the clause is not always Miami. Royal Caribbean’s terms designate the courts of England and Wales for cruises that do not touch a U.S. port. A DOHSA claim is a federal admiralty action either way — which court hears it is written in the ticket contract, and it is worth reading before you assume anything. The Perazzo Law Firm handles cruise ship wrongful death claims for families throughout Miami and South Florida from our office in North Miami Beach.
Cost
What does a cruise ship wrongful death lawyer cost?
Nothing upfront. The Perazzo Law Firm works on a contingency fee — we only get paid if we recover for your family. There are no hourly bills and no retainer; our fee is a percentage of the recovery.
Because the deadlines in a cruise death case are so short, and because becoming the legal personal representative takes time, the free review matters more here than in almost any other kind of claim. Even if your family decides not to hire anyone, a conversation can tell you what your ticket contract requires, by what date, and which law is likely to apply. Families may be responsible for case costs and expenses; we will explain exactly how contingency fees and costs work during your free review.
Don’t take our word
What our clients say.
“Mr. Perazzo handled my injury case and did an amazing job. His dedication to his clients really shows. My settlement was way more than what I expected. He explained the entire process and made sure to put my health and wellness first. THANK YOU!”
“Great staff! Hard working and will fight for you. He makes sure his clients are taken care of and get paid! Highly recommended.”
“Incredible care and detail made me feel like a star client. An honest team with a proven track record and consistently great results!”
Reviews from the firm’s Google Business Profile. Individual results vary; prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Straight answers
Cruise ship wrongful death FAQs.
How long does my family have to file a cruise ship wrongful death claim?+
What is DOHSA, and does it apply to our claim?+
Why can’t we recover for our grief or the loss of our loved one’s companionship?+
Who is legally allowed to bring this claim?+
What if the death happened close to shore or while the ship was in port?+
Does the deadline really get more time for a death claim?+
My family member was a cruise ship crew member, not a passenger. Is this different?+
What does it cost to hire The Perazzo Law Firm?+
Lost someone on a cruise? Where it happened matters right now.
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