Topic Links Maritime trade is essential to America's economic viability and national security interests. The U.S. Marine Transportation System (MTS) – comprising an intricate system of ports, terminals, vessels, waterways and...more
The maritime industry is undergoing a significant transformation that involves increased use of cyber-connected systems, coinciding with increased nation-state and cybercriminal targeting of cyber systems in ports and...more
The U.S. maritime industry is steeped in tradition and sometimes takes a conservative approach to change. Even when the industry has protocols in place to ensure safety of mariners, in some cases it takes an act of...more
Many legal questions have been raised during the last 120 hours; initially when communications had been lost with Titan, a submersible operated by OceanGate Inc., a corporation based in Everett, Washington, and then on the...more
When Congress enacted the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023, it included several provisions requiring owners and operators of US flag commercial vessels to report complaints and incidents...more
This month, the Governor of the U.S. Virgin Islands (“U.S.V.I.”), Albert Bryan Jr., signed an agreement with the Northeast Maritime Institute, a “Private Maritime College,” to establish the first open vessel registry in the...more
On September 22, 2021, the U.S. Coast Guard published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which would implement various changes relating to the certification of states’ titling systems for undocumented vessels. The NPRM...more
With President Joe Biden's 100th-day milestone approaching on April 30, 2021, the U.S. Coast Guard is holding a steady course on its expectations, including those related to environmental stewardship, innovation and...more
Mitigating the negative effects of climate change has been a signature issue of the Biden Administration, and if Thursday morning’s hearing on the decarbonization of the maritime industry is any indication, it will also be a...more
Nearly a year after issuing its most direct broad-scale guidance on maritime cybersecurity in the context of certain shoreside facilities, the U.S. Coast Guard has followed up with guidance and compliance parameters for...more
The U.S. Maritime Administration (MARAD) and its Marine Highway Program aims to work with the public and private sector to develop and expand marine highway service options. The America's Marine Highway Program (AMHP) was...more
The end of 2020 has seen significant developments in legislation with implications for the maritime industry as we move from the Trump administration to the new Biden administration. This article provides an update on the...more
More than 6000 U.S. flag commercial vessels carry more than 200 million passengers annually on domestic voyages in the United States. These include ferries, dinner-cruise vessels, sightseeing and excursion vessels, dive...more
Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and the U.S. Coast Guard issued a global advisory (the “Advisory”), providing information and...more
The U.S. Congress returns to work from August break this week, with just four months and fewer than 50 legislative days left in the 116th Congress and its most critical legislative priorities still unresolved. Amongst the...more
Much of the world’s focus is on the COVID-19 pandemic, and rightfully so, but sanctions regulators also have their gazes fixed on another issue: the maritime industry. On May 14 2020, we saw the U.S. Departments of State and...more
Representatives Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) and Peter DeFazio (D-OR) have recently introduced the Maritime Transportation System Emergency Relief Act (MTSERA) to provide financial relief to the maritime industry for losses...more
In December 2018, the Frank LoBiondo Coast Guard Authorization Act (the “LoBiondo Act”) was enacted to, among other things, improve and support the operation and administration of the Coast Guard and update maritime and...more
In response to an increase in deceptive shipping practices, on May 14, 2020, the State Department, Treasury Department and the Coast Guard issued a warning to the maritime industry, and those involved in the energy and metals...more
In a much-anticipated and far-reaching action, on May 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), and the U.S. Coast Guard issued an advisory (the...more
The U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) on May 14, 2020, issued a 35-page Sanctions Advisory that focuses on sanctions compliance...more
On May 14, 2020, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the Department of State, and the U.S. Coast Guard issued a Sanctions Advisory for the Maritime Industry, Energy and Metals...more
In the midst of the chaos generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, on March 20, 2020, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) released an important Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circular (NVIC 20-01) concerning “Guidelines for...more
Top 10 Considerations for Foreign Flag Vessels Calling on U.S. Ports and U.S. Flag Vessels Operating Worldwide (Detailed Discussion) - For almost a decade we have been discussing MARPOL Annex VI and the new global cap on...more
Blank Rome’s maritime attorneys have represented clients in some of the largest maritime casualties in the last 20 years, including the Staten Island Ferry allision with a maintenance pier in New York, the blow out and...more