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Owners & Operators

Acting for owners, operators and their insurers on all vessel ownership and operational issues.

From dealing with shipbuilding  and vessel registration to charterparties and  regulatory compliance, owners and operators face a diverse range of legal issues. The end to end service our marine team provides means that we are able to advise and support both owners and operators across the spectrum of issues they may face.

Working closely with our corporate and commercial team, the transactional matters that we deal with include: finance, risk management, force majeure, contracts of affreightment, bills of lading, fraud and electronic data interchange, consortia and pooling agreements, and registration and flag issues. We also advise on contractual terms including regulatory implications.

When disputes arise our breadth of expertise and global reach  enables us to provide coordinated and multi-jurisdictional support  to owners and operators over the full spectrum of wet and dry shipping disputes. We understand the importance of using the most appropriate and commercially focused  solutions in order to achieve the best result for our client.

Our Owners & Operators Work

  • All
  • Africa
  • Asia Pacific
  • Middle East
  • North America
  • UK & Europe
  • Agarwal Coal Hight Court Appeal

    Acting for Agarwal Coal Corporation in an appeal to the High Court arising out of a challenge to the jurisdiction of an arbitration tribunal. The case constituted an important clarification of the law regarding the correct service of notices of arbitration.

    United Kingdom

    Blue Seas vessel collision

    Successfully acting for sellers and their P&I Club on a sale/purchase dispute after the vessel was involved in a collision in China hours before due delivery. Our client cancelled for non-payment of the balance price and claimed the deposit. The buyers argued they were not in default as the ship was not in deliverable condition when the delivery period expired

    China

    Collision of "ALPINE ETERNITY"

    Acting for "ALPINE ETERNITY" and Britannia P&I Club in relation to all aspects of the claims management process after the vessel collided with Iranian-owned oil rig 'SPD 13A.'

    United Kingdom

    Collision of VLCC "ALEXANDRA 1" and "EVER SMART"

    Acting for Nautical Challenge subsequent to the collision of the laden VLCC "ALEXANDRA 1" and the laden container vessel "EVER SMART" and brought the case to successful completion at trial in the Admiralty Court in London, including making new important law relating to the safe navigation of ocean going vessels.

    United Kingdom

    Cross-border multi party collision arbitration

    Advising a major Chinese shipowner and its UK-based P&I Club in a significant cross-border, multi-party arbitration arising out of the collision of a vessel with a loading berth in Brazil

    China

    Elli vessel grounding

    Advising a shipowner and its P&I Club following a grounding in which the vessel broke her back and then split in two under tow to Suez for drydocking. This case required quick action to avoid pollution and further damage to the vessel. We dealt with various other issues including salvage, towage, safety, regulation, insurance, hull and P&I

    United Kingdom

    Forward freight agreements claim

    Acting for BHP Billiton against the TMT shipowning group on a claim for over USD130m under forward freight agreements; and successful cross-border enforcement of judgment obtained in the English High Court.

    United Kingdom

    Good Luck vessel collision

    Acting for the vessel's owners and managers as well as their P&I Club on a complex collision case after the vessel, while anchored in Singapore, lost both her anchors and collided with seven other vessels. Seven security demands were quickly negotiated and detailed settlement negotiations followed where issues of quantum, evidence, jurisdiction and liability to third parties arose. The potential liability of this case was over USD 6 million

    Singapore

    Holy Light global cargo claim

    Acting for shipowners and their P&I Club in a highly contentious USD 2 million cargo claim in Yemen, which involved managing complex interlinking proceedings worldwide and recovery action against the charterers’ group

    Yemen

    Longshoremans personal injury claim

    Acting in the successful defence of the shipowners and the manager of a serious personal injury claim by a longshoreman for a crushed hand during loading of a cargo container ship at New York Container Terminal

    United States
  • Potential sanctions breach chartering Libyan crude oil

    Advising an owner in relation to a voyage order from charterers to load a crude oil cargo out of Libya, including as to whether the owner could comply with the voyage order without being in breach of sanctions

    Libya
  • Cross-border multi party collision arbitration

    Advising a major Chinese shipowner and its UK-based P&I Club in a significant cross-border, multi-party arbitration arising out of the collision of a vessel with a loading berth in Brazil

    China

    Blue Seas vessel collision

    Successfully acting for sellers and their P&I Club on a sale/purchase dispute after the vessel was involved in a collision in China hours before due delivery. Our client cancelled for non-payment of the balance price and claimed the deposit. The buyers argued they were not in default as the ship was not in deliverable condition when the delivery period expired

    China

    NYK Argus onboard fire

    Instructed by Japanese owners and their P&I Club on the biggest container ship case in recent years, following a fire on board the vessel causing damage to high value electronic equipment

    Japan

    Good Luck vessel collision

    Acting for the vessel's owners and managers as well as their P&I Club on a complex collision case after the vessel, while anchored in Singapore, lost both her anchors and collided with seven other vessels. Seven security demands were quickly negotiated and detailed settlement negotiations followed where issues of quantum, evidence, jurisdiction and liability to third parties arose. The potential liability of this case was over USD 6 million

    Singapore
  • Holy Light global cargo claim

    Acting for shipowners and their P&I Club in a highly contentious USD 2 million cargo claim in Yemen, which involved managing complex interlinking proceedings worldwide and recovery action against the charterers’ group

    Yemen
  • Longshoremans personal injury claim

    Acting in the successful defence of the shipowners and the manager of a serious personal injury claim by a longshoreman for a crushed hand during loading of a cargo container ship at New York Container Terminal

    United States

    Salvage of Golden Seas

    Acting for owners and their P&I Club in the USD 4 million salvage of the vessel off Alaska, dealing with Lloyds Open Form salvage, General Average, salvage indemnity, cargo damage and a casualty investigation

    United States
  • Agarwal Coal Hight Court Appeal

    Acting for Agarwal Coal Corporation in an appeal to the High Court arising out of a challenge to the jurisdiction of an arbitration tribunal. The case constituted an important clarification of the law regarding the correct service of notices of arbitration.

    United Kingdom

    Collision of "ALPINE ETERNITY"

    Acting for "ALPINE ETERNITY" and Britannia P&I Club in relation to all aspects of the claims management process after the vessel collided with Iranian-owned oil rig 'SPD 13A.'

    United Kingdom

    Collision of VLCC "ALEXANDRA 1" and "EVER SMART"

    Acting for Nautical Challenge subsequent to the collision of the laden VLCC "ALEXANDRA 1" and the laden container vessel "EVER SMART" and brought the case to successful completion at trial in the Admiralty Court in London, including making new important law relating to the safe navigation of ocean going vessels.

    United Kingdom

    Elli vessel grounding

    Advising a shipowner and its P&I Club following a grounding in which the vessel broke her back and then split in two under tow to Suez for drydocking. This case required quick action to avoid pollution and further damage to the vessel. We dealt with various other issues including salvage, towage, safety, regulation, insurance, hull and P&I

    United Kingdom

    Forward freight agreements claim

    Acting for BHP Billiton against the TMT shipowning group on a claim for over USD130m under forward freight agreements; and successful cross-border enforcement of judgment obtained in the English High Court.

    United Kingdom

Our Owners & Operators team

Leon Alexander
Leon Alexander

Partner

Rebecca Armstrong
Rebecca Armstrong

Partner

Andrew Bicknell
Andrew Bicknell

Partner

Ik Wei Chong
Ik Wei Chong

Partner / Managing Director, Asia

Thomas Choo
Thomas Choo

Managing Partner

Fernando Escamilla
Fernando Escamilla

Partner

Frederick Fein
Frederick Fein

Partner

John Flaherty
John Flaherty

Partner

Laura Gongaware
Laura Gongaware

Partner

Corey Greenwald
Corey Greenwald

Partner

Simon Jackson
Simon Jackson

Partner

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