Admiralty and Maritime law is a unique niche in the law. SMBP represents and advises inland towing companies, barge owners, ship repair facilities, barge cleaning facilities, terminals, stevedores, fleeters, marinas, dry docks, cargo owners, and marine underwriters. SMBP’s maritime practice spans the Ohio River and its tributaries from Pittsburgh, PA to Cairo, IL and along the lower Mississippi River to New Orleans. We routinely advise clients on a wide range of issues, including, Jones Act liability, seaworthiness, maintenance and cure, collisions/allisions, maritime contracts, the Limitation of Liability Act, the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act, 905(b) vessel negligence claims, towage, fleeting, salvage, general average, and marine insurance. Services include all phases of litigation, administrative claims handling, Coast Guard licensure disputes, on-site investigation of maritime casualties, as well as interfacing with the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, OSHA, and other governmental agencies. SMB&P protects its clients’ interests by maintaining extensive contacts with experts in the fields of maritime navigation, engineering, medicine, and vocational economics. SMBP integrates legal and medical knowledge and experience, with sophisticated litigation management and trial strategies to serve its clients’ interests.
In addition to the practice of law, SMBP’s maritime attorneys routinely give presentations and lectures at maritime trade association meetings and to marine insurance claims representatives. The article Seaman Status in the Wake of Stewart, a Blurred Distinction Between Land- and Sea-Based Workers, authored by Mr. Powers and Ms. Ahrens, was published in the Spring 2008 Loyola Maritime Law Journal.
SMBP has a history of over 75 years of combined experience providing legal services to its maritime clients.
