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
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 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
The slumberous snare had scarce unbound [Palinurus’s] limbs, when, leaning o’er, the god upon the waters flung him forth, hands clutching still the helm and ship-rail torn, and calling on his comrades, but in vain.! …Yet were...more
In two issues of first impression, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals read the complete defense provisions for oil spills under the Oil Pollution Act (“OPA”) to strictly construe the defenses and make them only very narrowly...more
In a chillingly apropos follow-on to the mid-summer global Petya and WannaCry cyber/ransomware attacks, which crippled businesses and government interests around the world, October has been dubbed “National Cyber Security...more
The past eighteen to twenty-four months have seen a tectonic shift of focus (as well as a plethora of industry-generated white papers) by virtually every governmental regulatory entity, NGO, and industry group in the maritime...more
The United States Coast Guard Rear Admiral Paul Thomas recently penned an article for the Marine News magazine, February 2016 edition, highlighting the Coast Guard’s “priorities” for 2016. The article is available at the...more
Continuing their post-Macondo/Deepwater Horizon symbiotic approach to regulating the offshore oil industry, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) issued a joint Safety...more
As previously reported here, the offshore industry has been anxiously awaiting new United States Coast Guard (USCG) regulations for large offshore supply vessels (OSVs) in the wake of the 2010 Coast Guard Authorization Act...more
In the new world of shared regulatory oversight between the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and BSEE on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), a mundane devil-in-the-details – but nonetheless vitally important question – had...more
In a 106-page Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued Monday, January 13, 2014, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) has undertaken a wide-ranging overhaul of the standards for fire protection, detection and extinguishment...more
In the continuing regulatory response - even more than three years after the fact - to the DEEPWATER HORIZON disaster, the United States Coast Guard (USCG) has led off 2014 with proposed regulations that significantly change...more