Zehl & Associates secures $16M Jones Act settlement for injured drillship worker

Ryan Zehl: “Offshore workers do some of the most physically demanding and dangerous work in the world. When the companies they work for fail to give them a safe place to do that work, we hold them fully accountable.”

Houston personal injury law firm Zehl & Associates reports that last year it secured a $16 million settlement on behalf of an injured offshore worker — a result recognized by TopVerdicts as both the largest reported Jones Act maritime settlement in Texas for 2025 and one of the most significant legal recoveries in the state across all practice areas for the year.

The recovery stemmed from an offshore accident involving a floorhand working aboard a drillship in the Gulf of Mexico. The worker suffered significant injuries after an incident involving equipment in the vessel’s moonpool area.

Following extensive litigation and trial preparation, Zehl & Associates secured the settlement shortly before trial.

“Offshore workers do some of the most physically demanding and dangerous work in the world. When the companies they work for fail to give them a safe place to do that work, we hold them fully accountable” said Zehl & Associates founder Ryan Zehl.

Zehl & Associates’ says that the award strengthens its standing as one of the country’s preeminent maritime and offshore injury law firms. The firm represents injured seamen, offshore workers, contractors, and their families in matters involving the Jones Act, general maritime law, drillship and platform accidents, vessel explosions, and catastrophic workplace injuries throughout U.S. waters.