I practice in the Maritime Law where I counsel clients on a wide variety of maritime interests including admiralty and maritime law and maritime pollution law. Prior to entering private practice, I served for fourteen years as a commissioned officer and law specialist in the United States Coast Guard, eventually reaching the rank of Lieutenant Commander. I served as the Coast Guard and Department of Transportation liaison to Capitol Hill for the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 and related bills, providing technical input regarding the legal and practical implications of various proposed legislation dealing with vessel construction, operations and environmental response. Before departing the service, I established the Coast Guard’s first Defense Advocate Team tasked to provide legal representation to service members facing military criminal charges and administrative discharges. I have extensive experience in charter party drafting, charter party interpretation and conflict resolution. I have drafted and/or revised several blanket Contracts of Affreightment primarily concerning bulk dry cargoes such as petroleum coke and coal. I routinely represented large multi-national power generation companies with affreightment contracts for world-wide ports. I also devised and delivered world-wide training sessions for a client describing and interpreting the Contract of Affreightment he drafted.I have represented a variety of maritime clients in civilian practice for the past 30 years, concentrating in the area of prosecution and defense of various property damage claims, vessel collision and grounding claims, marine personal injury and wrongful death claims, as well as addressing issues involving maritime construction and marine contracts. I am acknowledged as one the areas leading attorneys in marine pollution and riparian rights.