OceanGate is 'done' and could get sued even though Titan passengers signed waivers, lawyer says

• Families of the dead Titan submersible passengers could sue OceanGate, a lawyer said.
• If investigators find gross negligence, lawsuits will get filed "pretty quickly," William Mack said.

OceanGate could be sued by families of the Titan submersible passengers if investigations into its implosion find gross negligence — even though they'd signed waivers, a lawyer said.

"The enforceability of those types of liability waivers will be tested by the families of these deceased people," William Mack, a commercial litigation lawyer and partner at Davidoff Hutcher & Citron, told Insider.

He expected that their legal representatives would "make whatever arguments they can that this liability waiver will not apply if there's gross negligence."

Mack also expected the families of the passengers who died to appoint an expert to conduct an independent review into the implosion.

It's possible investigators conclude that OceanGate concealed material risks and made misrepresentations about the safety of the sub, he added.

US and Canadian officials are investigating the implosion that killed all on board. Canada's Transportation Safety Board said its probe would include the Polar Prince mothership, which is Canadian-registered.

The US National Transportation Safety Board will assist the US Coast Guard in its investigation, the NTSB tweeted.

"If they determine the deaths were as a result of some sort of negligence outside the liability waiver then we could see litigation filed pretty quickly," Mack said.

A former OceanGate employee claimed in a 2018 lawsuit he was wrongfully terminated after voicing concerns about the submersible's poor "quality control and safety" protocols that "paying passengers would not be aware" of, per court filings.

David Lochridge, who was director of marine operations, claimed OceanGate refused to carry out "critical, non-destructive testing of the experimental design."

OceanGate cofounder and CEO Stockton Rush also died in the incident.

The company could now be wound up and bankruptcy was a possibility, according to Mack.

"This company, in my opinion, is done," he said. "Can you imagine them ever having another customer or investor? They're through."

The passengers' families may be able to collect life insurance payouts despite signing waivers, two legal experts told Insider's Erin Snodgrass.

OceanGate did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider, made outside normal working hours.