Sher & Blackwell's expertise in
the maritime sector includes corporate, commercial, transactional, contract and financing
activities. Our work regularly involves cargo and passenger transportation, towage,
dredging, intermodal transport, terminals, offshore energy, fisheries and marine
construction. Because 
of our attorneys’ in-depth understanding
of the industry, we can provide a unique perspective that permits us to help our clients
achieve results that are commercially appropriate, as well as legally sound.
We have significant experience with maritime joint ventures,
business alliances, space and vessel charters, consortia, ratemaking agreements, and other
forms of operational agreements. In the U.S., this often requires an understanding of
maritime commerce, maritime regulation, and antitrust regulation.
A key part of our practice involves asset based financing in
the shipping and offshore energy sectors. Financing has included commercial and government
guaranteed debt, often with complex securitization, ownership, or guarantee arrangements.
Maritime activity in the United States domestic trades often
involves ensuring that corporate and transactional arrangements comply with federal laws
governing cabotage (e.g., Jones Act, Towing and Salvage Statute, Dredging Statute,
Passenger Vessel Services Act, and American Fisheries Act) and citizenship. The firm has
significant expertise in U.S. cabotage, citizenship and vessel documentation requirements
governing the movement of passengers and merchandise by vessel, as well as towage,
salvage, fisheries and dredging. We also have substantial experience advising clients as
to compliance with these requirements in the context of new business formation, joint
ventures, corporate and asset acquisitions, operating agreements, charters, and ship
financing.
Our firm has been involved in the drafting, negotiation and
enforcement of more ocean transportation service contracts than any other law firm in the
United States. We have handled hundreds of arbitrations and court cases involving service
contracts. A large number of these proceedings were before non-U.S. arbitration panels or
courts. These contracts can cover simple ocean transport in a single trade or involve
complex intermodal and logistics arrangements covering operations in numerous countries
worldwide.
In the liner sector, intermodalism has become a frequent
accompanying element of maritime transport. We have advised clients on intermodal
contracts with inland vendors such as railroads, truckers, third party logistics
providers, transportation brokers and forwarders. We have also worked on equipment leases,
depot and container yard agreements, contracts with maintenance and repair facilities, and
chassis pool arrangements. In our experience, familiarity with equipment interchange
agreements, equipment leases, and other intermodal transport documentation is critical to
rendering effective advice on contractual obligations and accident liability implications
of intermodal carriage. 
