OCSLA Lawyers (Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act)

The Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) defines the outer continental shelf as any and all submerged lands lying beyond state coastal waters, greater than three miles offshore, which are under United States jurisdiction. This law helps to codify the injured seaman’s right to bring cases for incidents that occur on the Outer Continental Shelf.

OCSLA applies to:

1. The subsoil and seabed of the Outer Continental Shelf

2. Any artificial island, installation, or other device if

• permanently or temporarily attached to the Outer Continental Shelf seabed, and
• erected on the seabed of the Outer Continental Shelf, and
• its presence on the Outer Continental Shelf is to explore for, develop or produce resources from the Outer Continental Shelf

3. Any artificial island, installation, or other device if

• permanently or temporarily attached to the seabed of the Outer Continental Shelf, and
• not a ship or vessel, and
• its presence on the Outer Continental Shelf is to transport resources from the Outer Continental Shelf.

If these requirements of the “situs test” are met, the next question we ask is which law, federal or state, governs the cause of action. Applicable state law substitutes in the place of federal law for claims arising out of activity on the Outer Continental Shelf.

For state law to govern, the following three tests must be met:

1.The controversy must arise on a situs covered by OCSLA.

2. Federal maritime law must not apply of its own force.

3. The state law must not be inconsistent with the federal law.

The Longshore and Harbor Workers Compensation Act (LHWCA) may be extended to non-seamen employed on the Outer Continental Shelf. LHWCA will apply to injuries occurring as a result of operations conducted on the Outer Continental Shelf with the purpose of exploring for, developing, removing or transporting by pipeline the natural resources of the Outer Continental Shelf.

If you have been injured while working on the Outer Continental Shelf, you should contact the experienced OCSLA Attorneys of Schechter, Shaffer & Harris, L.L.P. by email at info@smslegal.com or by phone at (800) 836-5830.