Admiralty, Maritime & Energy Litigation
The Admiralty, Maritime & Energy Litigation Practice handles a broad array of matters from our offices located throughout the nation. Our clients include a wide variety of businesses involved in the maritime and energy industry, as well as marine and energy insurers. Our practice places a particular emphasis on the marine and oil and gas industries, from wellhead to gas pump, throughout the Gulf of Mexico, as well as maritime and energy litigation and transactional matters on the West Coast, along the Eastern Seaboard, and across the United States. Our Litigation group has extensive jury and bench trial experience in maritime and energy matters in the state and federal courts, works regularly in the appellate courts, and is adept at all forms of alternative dispute resolution, including arbitrations and mediation.
Casualty Claims
We represent clients involved in upstream exploration and production, as well as those involved in downstream refining, distribution and marketing. We have experience in the defense of catastrophic personal injury, death and property damage claims arising from incidents aboard ships, barges, vessels, terminals, marinas, onshore and offshore rigs and platforms of all kinds, as well as claims arising out of refineries, marine terminals, pipelines, service stations and construction sites.
Our attorneys have handled virtually every type of personal injury defense and property damage claim involving the application of maritime law. We regularly defend our clients and their insurers against personal injury and death claims brought by seamen under the Jones Act, the General Maritime Law and DOHSA. We defend third party claims brought by longshoremen/ship repair workers under the LHWCA and workers on the Outer Continental Shelf under the OCSLA. We handle personal injury and property claims arising out of the operation of marine terminals and equipment, as well as claims involving yachts and other small recreational watercraft. We also have experience defending maritime products liability cases.
Our attorneys have experience in complex maritime litigation including limitation of liability proceedings, in rem actions, maritime attachment actions, vessel arrests, ship mortgage foreclosures, general average, and other issues involving maritime liens. In matters involving bankruptcy of an opposing party, we can employ the resources of our Bankruptcy & Insolvency, Surety, and Fidelity Practices.
Transactional Matters
Our practice also provides clients with expertise in negotiating and drafting master service agreements, ocean transportation contracts including charter parties, bills of lading, and terminal leases. Given our familiarity with these types of agreements, we are proficient with litigation of disputes arising from these transactions.
Cargo Litigation
We regularly litigate cargo damage and loss claims arising from ocean, ground, rail and air transportation contracts under the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, the Carmack Amendment, and Montreal Convention.
Ocean & Inland Marine Insurance
We have particular expertise in advising and defending insurance clients on coverage and bad faith claims for ocean and inland marine risks, such as P&I, hull & machinery, maritime employers’ liability, operator’s extra expense, control of well, re-drill, builder’s risk, construction, property, charterer’s liability, business interruption, pollution, yacht, cargo, marina, general liability, excess liability, umbrella liability and other policies that insure owners, employers, carriers, charterers, ship builders and repairers, wharfingers, terminals, bailees and warehousers, freight forwarders and other third-party logistics providers and cargo intermediaries.
Toxic Torts Litigation
Working together with the firm’s Class Action & Mass Tort and Toxic Tort & Environmental Litigation Practices, our attorneys represent clients in defense of mass tort, toxic tort, and class action cases in the maritime and energy industries.
Chair
Vice Chair
Related Articles
- January 31, 2019 Fifth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment in Favor of Vessel Owner in Jones Act Claim Regarding “Prompt and Adequate Medical Care”
- January 31, 2019 Fifth Circuit Upholds Ruling That Operator of Tug Is Also “Operating” Oil Barge Being Towed For Purposes of OPA ’90
- January 31, 2019 Ninth Circuit Clarifies Necessaries For Purposes Of a Maritime Lien
- July 02, 2018 Fourth Circuit Affirms Conviction and Sentencing of Vessel Owner and Operator for Violations of APPS
- July 02, 2018 Court Rejects Argument That Forum Selection Clause Violates COGSA Because Forum Does Not Recognize In Rem Actions
- July 02, 2018 Lewis Brisbois Counsel Secures Dismissal of LHWCA Complaint in New York
- March 12, 2018 Fifth Circuit Replaces 6-Factor Test of Maritime Contract Jurisdiction in Favor of 2-Factor Test in Kirby
- March 08, 2018 Ninth Circuit Splits With Fifth Circuit in Deciding that Punitive Damages are Available in Unseaworthiness Cases
- March 08, 2018 Fifth Circuit Re-examines Scindia Duties
- November 30, 2017 No Maritime Lien for the Replacement Cost of Inventory Not Delivered to Ferry
- November 30, 2017 Court Applies the Reasonable Foreseeability Test to the “Bare-Metal Defense” in Asbestos Case Under Maritime Law
- November 30, 2017 Eleventh Circuit Clarifies the Permissible Reach of Rule B
- November 30, 2017 Judge in New York’s Southern District Orders Rule B Attachment of Bank Accounts of Overseas Companies For Over $12.2M
- July 11, 2017 Indemnity? Insurance? Neither? Both? Fifth Circuit Denies Indemnity Claim but Remands for Determinat
- July 11, 2017 Louisiana Court Allows Recovery of Economic Loss in Admiralty Case, Refusing to Apply East River Doc
- July 11, 2017 Louisiana Court Finds Disputed Factual Issues In Maritime Negligence Case
- April 03, 2017 Contract Calling for Work on Fixed Platform Deemed Maritime Contract
- April 03, 2017 U.S. Fifth Circuit Finds no State or Federal Actionable Claims Against Oil and Gas Related Companies
- December 20, 2016 Fifth Circuit Interprets Collateral Source Rule to Limit Recovery by Plaintiff to Medical Expenses P
- December 20, 2016 Louisiana Court Refuses to Find Admiralty Jurisdiction over Personal Injury Occurring on a Trailered
- September 26, 2016 Texas Court Rejects Policy Interpretation Extending Coverage To Well Blowout Expenses
- September 26, 2016 Fifth Circuit holds Floating Offshore Tension Leg Platform not a Vessel Under LHWCA
- September 26, 2016 Dueling Policies: When Excess Carriers Face Off In Mississippi
- September 26, 2016 Component Parts Not Covered After Removal From Scheduled Rig
- September 26, 2016 Louisiana Court Holds Documents Created by Loss Prevention and Claims Management Companies are not P
- September 26, 2016 Louisiana Court Upholds Award of $23 Million in Punitive Damages under General Maritime Law
- June 29, 2016 Crew Sublimit of Protection and Indemnity Policy Unambiguously Applied to Loss
- June 28, 2016 P&I Policy Does Not Cover Jones Act Seaman’s Land-Based Accident
- June 28, 2016 OCSLA Choice of Law Is Not Waivable, Inadvertently or Otherwise
- June 28, 2016 Louisiana Court Upholds Award of $309,174 in Attorneys’ Fees for Pursuit of Maintenance and Cure
- June 28, 2016 Responsible Party under OPA not responsible for damages resulting from government imposed Moratorium
- March 28, 2016 Federal Fifth Circuit Finds Federal Jurisdiction over Oil Pipeline Pollution Suit
- March 28, 2016 Insurers’ Oil Rig Coverage Trial Win Upheld By Federal Fifth Circuit
- March 28, 2016 Court Found Drill Ship Could be “Vessel in Navigation” Under Facts Presented
- March 28, 2016 Seaman Seeks En Banc Review of Employer Ruling In Transocean Pirate Attack Suit
- March 28, 2016 Claims Dismissed Against Deepwater Horizon Clean-Up Responders
- December 23, 2015 Owner of Rig Lost in Hurricane Not Liable for Damage to Vessel that Later Allided with Sunken Rig
- October 01, 2015 5th Circuit Declines to Use Period of Employment with Borrowing Employer to Determine Seaman Status
- October 01, 2015 Owner of Drilling Rig Not Liable for Injury Caused by Broken Flip-Flop
- October 01, 2015 On Katrina’s 10th Anniversary: MRGO Gone but Not Forgotten
- September 26, 2015 Fifth Circuit Re-Visits Standing Law on Seaman Status
- July 09, 2015 Scheduled Policy Applied as Blanket Due to Ambiguous Policy Wording
- July 09, 2015 Borrowed Servant Doctrine Used to Avoid Vicarious Liability
- July 09, 2015 Insured’s ACV Claim Reaches For The Stars, But Finds Them Falling…
- July 09, 2015 Law of the Case Doctrine Inapplicable: Policy Does Not Cover Rig Damages
- July 09, 2015 BP Drops Rehearing Motion For Transocean’s Policy After Settlement of Deepwater Claims
- July 09, 2015 Fifth Circuit’s Denial of Punitive Damages to Seamen in McBride Stands as Law of the Circuit
- March 18, 2015 Louisiana Appellate Court Suggests Chandris’ 30% Rule for Seaman Status is Only a Guideline
- December 19, 2014 Louisiana Court Interprets Indemnity Provision in MSA Narrowly to Preclude Indemnity
- December 19, 2014 “Other Insurance” Does Not Turn Potential Indemnity Claim Into Underlying Insurance
- December 19, 2014 Fifth Circuit Rules that Punitive Damages are Not Available to Seamen
- September 16, 2014 BP Bears Brunt of Liability for Macondo Spill and Accompanying Statutory Liability
- June 25, 2014 Louisiana Legislature Passes Bill to Retroactively Prohibit Coastal Erosion Lawsuit
- June 25, 2014 Texas, not Maritime, Law Applied to Claim Arising from Intoxication on Chartered Fishing Boat
- June 25, 2014 Macondo Well Was Source of Discharge for Purposes of CWA Civil Penalty Liability
- March 21, 2014 Jones Act Seaman Status Awarded to Vessel Repairer Operating a Land Based Crane at Time of Injury
- March 17, 2014 BP Can’t Re-Write Terms of Multi-Billion Dollar Settlement of Gulf Oil Spill Claims
Related Legal Alerts
Related News
- June 16, 2017 David Russo Published by MarineLink
Related Newsletters
- February 04, 2019 Admiralty Newsletter - Winter 2019
- July 03, 2018 Admiralty Newsletter - Summer 2018
- March 13, 2018 Admiralty Newsletter - Winter 2018
- December 04, 2017 Admiralty Newsletter - Fall 2017
- August 17, 2017 Admiralty Newsletter - Summer 2017
- July 14, 2017 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Summer 2017
- April 05, 2017 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Spring 2017
- December 21, 2016 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Winter, 2016
- September 28, 2016 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Fall, 2016
- June 29, 2016 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Summer, 2016
- April 04, 2016 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Spring, 2016
- December 29, 2015 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Winter, 2015
- October 02, 2015 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Fall, 2015
- July 10, 2015 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Summer, 2015
- March 23, 2015 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Spring, 2015
- September 19, 2014 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Fall, 2014
- July 01, 2014 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Summer, 2014
- April 18, 2014 Gulf Coast Legal Update - Spring, 2014