Representing P&I clubs, insurance companies, shipowners, marine operators, New York harbor ferry operators, and marine construction and dredging operators, Freehill Hogan & Mahar LLP‘s team includes attorneys who attended the US’ merchant marine academies or served in the US Navy. The New York-based practice fields experts in major casualties, while the firm’s personal injury defense practice covers maritime personal injury claims, occupational disease cases, workmen’s compensation claims, Defense Base Act cases, and premises liability matters. Peter Gutowski‘s workload encompasses charter party disputes, casualties, cargo loss and damage claims, and the exercise of provisional remedies such as arrest and attachment; Don Murnane maintains an extensive maritime litigation and arbitration practice; Wayne Meehan specializes in major casualties; and John Karpousis is a maritime personal injury law specialist. The firm further showcases marine casualty experts Michael Fernandez and Daniel Fitzgerald; Thomas Canevari, who concentrates on marine personal injury and death cases; William Pallas, an adviser on intermodal cargo loss and damage cases; and Justin Nastro, an expert in admiralty, personal injury, insurance defense, cargo and Jones Act claims. Other key practitioners are Eric Matheson, Will Yost, Michael Tucker, Tanner Honea and Yaakov Adler, along with Michael Dehart, Mathew Pallay and Ryan Byrnes.

From offices in Houston, Mobile, New Orleans, and Miami, Jones Walker LLP‘s sizeable maritime litigation and dispute resolution group acts in state, federal, and administrative proceedings throughout the US, including emergency response, maritime litigation, regulatory, and transactional disputes. Advising on every aspect of the maritime industry, the firm is home to experts in the brown water, blue water, cruise line and offshore energy sectors. Among the practice’s several active practitioners, Grady Hurley is first vice president of the US’ Maritime Law Association; Jefferson Tillery tries cases in state and federal courts throughout the Gulf Coast; Scott Jenkins assists with both regulatory issues and maritime disputes; and Richard Bertram heads the maritime regulatory team. The department further includes Etienne Balart, who represents terminals, shipyards, and vessel operators in litigation; George Fowler III, whose track record includes trying hundreds of cases to juries and judges; Wayne Zeringue Jr, a specialist in admiralty and maritime litigation; and Sara Kuebel, who is also an active maritime litigator. Over in Miami, Luis Llamas‘ practice encompasses admiralty disputes and cruise line claims, while former partner Lara DiCristina is an August 2023 departee. All practitioners named are based in the firm’s New Orleans office unless otherwise mentioned.

K&L Gates‘ ‘pragmatic, ethical and very knowledgeable’ maritime practice is consistently mandated to advise on arrests, attachments, and seizures of vessels and cargo. The team also assists with cargo claims, limitation of liability proceedings, vessel collisions, allisions, groundings, and personal injury and death-related matters. The firm additionally houses experts in marine insurance claims; and charter party, bill of lading and other maritime contractual disputes, as well as piracy-related issues. On the environmental side, the group regularly defends ship owners, operators, managers, charterers and crew members facing civil fines or criminal prosecution under domestic and foreign environmental regulations. In Boston, Jeffrey King focuses on commercial litigation and arbitration involving maritime and transportation. In Washington DC, Michael Scanlon‘s maritime practice involves both domestic and international maritime work, Mark Ruge ‘has an incredible handle on policy’, Darrell Conner is a government affairs counselor in the firm’s public policy and law group, and Elle Stuart assists with transportation-related federal regulatory, policy and legislative matters. In the firm’s New York office, George Kontakis is ‘a very bright, knowledgeable and easy-to-reach partner’. Jorge Romero retired in April 2024, and Luke Reid left the firm in June 2024.

A ‘safe pair of hands with significant experience’, Clyde & Co LLP‘s marine team comprises experts in marine insurance, marine-related regulatory sanctions, and maritime litigation and arbitration. The group routinely acts for shipping companies and commodities trading firms, as well as their insurers, in hull, liability, cargo, pollution, sanctions, insolvency, war risk, loss of earnings, and environmental claims. The team is also mandated to lead investigations involving marine and industrial facility casualties, Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions, operational safety and environmental compliance, and criminal enforcement actions. The track record of the ‘well-connected and approachable’ John Keough includes litigating complex maritime, insurance and commercial disputes in state and federal courts throughout the US; and John Woods has significant experience in cases involving shipbuilding contracts and third party marine liability. The team also features the firm’s aviation, marine and energy practice co-head, Corey Greenwald, who handles complex commercial disputes involving major marine casualties. All listed attorneys are based in the firm’s New York office unless otherwise stated. In September 2023, Conte Cicala departed the firm.

Cozen O'Connor‘s maritime regulatory team acts for shipping liner trade associations, joint ventures, consortia, carrier alliances, and equipment pools. The group consistently represents maritime companies in regulatory and competition issues, as well as in relation to maritime-related US sanctions. The practice also comprises experts in Jones Act work (and other US cabotage laws), and matters regulated by the Federal Maritime Commission, Coast Guard, Maritime Administration, Customs and Border Protection, and Office of Foreign Assets Control. On the litigation front, the team acts in major marine casualties, as well as complex personal injury, wrongful death, loss of cargo and pollution claims. In Washington DC, David Heffernan is transportation and trade group chair; Jeffrey Lawrence and Robert Magovern regularly appear before DC’s federal transportation and trade agencies, as well as before foreign governments and international organizations; Wayne Rohde and Jeff Vogel are ‘go-to individuals in this space’; and Joshua Stein and Matthew Howell also handle maritime-related regulatory matters. Over in New York, Geoffrey Ferrer‘s expertise encompasses maritime lien and mortgage enforcement actions; and Christopher Raleigh focuses on maritime-related litigation and arbitration.

Holland & Knight is consistently sought out to handle US-related maritime incidents. Recent workloads include supply chain ensnarement-related litigation and proceedings before the Federal Maritime Commission, and the representation of shipper companies seeking recoupment for charges imposed during the pandemic. The team is also active in cargo loss work, while its full-service status facilitates the leveraging of antitrust, sanctions, energy, environmental, and tax specialisms. The practice is further mandated on a daily basis to advise on shipping regulatory issues, including Coast Guard and related matters, customs and border protection issues, carriage of dangerous goods, Office of Foreign Asset Control matters, embargoes, economic sanctions, and International Maritime Organization conventions. National transportation and infrastructure industry co-chair Christopher Nolan ‘provides practical and actionable advice’; Michael Frevola acts in maritime arbitrations and court proceedings; James Power‘s practice encompasses admiralty law; and Vincent Foley focuses predominantly on international transportation litigation and arbitration. Washington DC-based partner Michael Cavanaugh is a shipbuilding legislative and regulatory expert, and Julia Haines acts in offshore energy and traditional maritime litigation from the Houston office. All advisers are based in New York unless otherwise mentioned.

Seward & Kissel LLP, offering ‘deep knowledge of both the underlying transactions and best strategies for resolving commercial disputes that arise’, handles litigation, arbitration and investigations throughout the US and abroad, with the maritime litigation practice focusing on disputes arising from shipping business, financing transactions, shipping securities and governance, as well as vessel operations. ‘At the top of his game’, Bruce Paulsen is a specialist in shipping industry-related finance and securities-related disputes, along with traditional maritime disputes, lien claims and environmental issues. Paulsen co-chairs the litigation group alongside Russell Johnston, who was elevated to the role in September 2023. In another boost to the practice, Brian Maloney was promoted to partner in July 2023. Maloney specialises in litigating complex commercial disputes and managing regulatory investigations, and has a growing caseload in relation to shipping industry-related sanctions. The team further includes Laura Miller, promoted to counsel in January 2024, whose recent experience includes being part of the team representing ING Bank in lawsuits arising from the OW Bunker group’s global collapse. All advisers listed are based in the firm’s New York office.

Winston & Strawn LLP has a strong market reputation for its advice on complex maritime issues involving US government policy and law, as well as shipping-related  transactions, litigation, regulations, and enforcement issues. The full-service practice also routinely leverages the firm’s other litigation and regulatory practices, including attorneys from the appellate, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, global trade, and labor and employment practices. The team additionally represents port authorities and marine terminal operators in disputes before the Federal Maritime Commission, including challenges to proposed rules, and the litigation of alleged unlawful preference and refusal to deal disputes. Chairing the firm’s maritime and admiralty practice, Charlie Papavizas, who represents shipowners, operators, managers, shipyards, energy companies, marine construction companies, and financial institutions, focuses on the administrative and legislative aspects of the maritime industry. Bryant Gardner‘s practice ranges from maritime government contract disputes, US flag programs and The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), to Shipping Act and Federal Maritime Commission-related disputes and Jones Act compliance issues. All advisers listed are based in the Washington DC office unless otherwise stated.

Liskow‘s maritime practice group is well known for its representation of oil and gas company clients in large offshore incidents. The practice also covers inland and ocean carriers, as well as the full range of maritime litigation across the US. Among the firm’s several active practitioners, salvage and wreck removal lawyer David Reisman ‘gives sound advice and excellent client care’; Keith Jarrett acts for oil majors in large maritime cases in the Gulf of Mexico; and Raymond Waid‘s recent experience includes being first chair trial counsel in maritime litigation in New York, Maine, Maryland, Florida, Texas, Washington, Louisiana, and Panama. Michael Golemi in Houston is an expert in mass barge breakaway cases; Thomas Diaz is a go-to maritime lawyer for the oil and gas industry; and Jill Willhoft represents family-owned vessel operators in south Louisiana. All attorneys listed are in New Orleans unless otherwise stated.

McGuireWoods LLP‘s ‘consistently available’ transportation, shipping, maritime and regulatory team acts for terminal operators, transportation authorities, beneficial cargo owners, commodity traders, carriers, financial institutions, and vessel owners and charterers on a vast array of shipping matters. The team consistently advises on regulatory compliance with the Jones Act, as well as shipping-related international trade issues (including the shipping regulations that determine how shippers and carriers can interact). Its practice also encompasses assistance to retailers with licensing and regulatory issues, in relation to Ocean Transportation Intermediaries-related matters; and it assists beneficial cargo owners with new enforcement remedies, which are available through the Federal Maritime Commission and the Ocean Shipping Reform Act. Heading up the team, Norfolk-based John Padgett is experienced in representing tug boat companies, freight forwarders, freight consolidators, and shipping and trucking companies; and Bryan Brantley in Pittsburgh is an experienced transportation-related litigator. In September 2023, Jeanne Noonan left the firm.

Thompson Hine LLP is consistently mandated to represent shippers and intermediaries in policy and rulemaking matters concerning the Shipping Act of 1984 (as amended by the Ocean Shipping Reform Act). The team additionally advises on Federal Maritime Commission regulations, in relation to containerized cargo’s ocean transportation services. The group is also well known for acting for the National Industrial Transportation League, which represents shippers’ interests in freight transportation matters; and the practice regularly applies its regulatory expertise to the drafting and reviewing of international service contracts, charter agreements, ocean bills of lading, and towage contracts. Heading up the department, Karyn Booth is a specialist in multimodal transportation and logistics services; and Jason Tutrone‘s practice covers transportation regulatory compliance and protections for shippers, along with logistics-related litigation. Also key to the practice, Columbus-based Dan Ujczo is an expert in ocean and barge transportation. All attorneys are in Washington DC unless otherwise mentioned.

Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP fields a defense-side litigation practice that consistently appears before local, state and federal courts. The maritime practice group is mandated by several international group P&I clubs, for matters relating to vessel owner members, particularly 24/7 casualty responses. Antonio Rodriguez is an expert in collision and other shipping and pollution casualties; and Jake Rodriguez‘s practice covers the Jones Act and Shipowners’ Limitation of Liability Act, along with maritime product liability, marine insurance, and salvage and cargo issues. The team also showcases Mike Harowski, who ‘brings a wealth of experience’; San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego-based Otis Felder, an adviser to London Market insurers on coverage disputes; civil litigator Kent Adams, who splits his time between Houston and New Orleans; and Houston-based civil and maritime litigation expert John Bridger. All named practitioners are based in New Orleans unless otherwise mentioned.