Herb's Welding, Inc., et al. v. Gray et al. (470 U.S. 414)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided March 18, 1985 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 470 U.S. 414 · 105 S. Ct. 1421
- Decided
- March 18, 1985
- Term
- October Term 1984
- Vote
- 5–4
- Majority author
- Justice White
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
Justice White delivered the opinion of the Court. The Longshoremen’s and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA or Act), 44 Stat. 1424, as amended, 33 U. S. C. § 901 et seq., provides compensation for the death or disability of any person engaged in “maritime employment,” §902(3), if the disability or death results from an injury incurred upon the navigable waters of the United States or any adjoining pier or other area customarily used by an employer in loading, unloading, repairing, or building a vessel, § 903(a). Thus, a worker claiming under the Act must satisfy both a “status” and a “situs” test. The court below held that respondent Robert Gray, a welder working on a fixed offshore oil-drilling platform in state territorial waters, was entitled to benefits under the Act. We reverse for the reason that Gray was not engaged in maritime employment. I-H Respondent Gray worked for Herb s Welding, Inc., m the Bay Marchand oil and gas field off the Louisiana coast. Herb’s Welding provided welding services to the owners of drilling platforms. The field was located partly in Louisiana territorial waters, i. e., within three miles of the shore, and partly on the Outer Continental Shelf. Gray ate and slept on a platform situated in Louisiana waters. He spent roughly three-quarters of his working time on platforms in state waters and the rest on platforms on the Outer Continental…
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