Practice areas
ADMIRALTY and MARITIME LAW
With its many years in Ballard tuned to the pulse of the Northwest and Alaska maritime and fishing industries, the firm provides comprehensive and cost-effective services in the areas of admiralty and maritime law. Our clients benefit greatly from our firm's insider knowledge of maritime and fishing issues. Our attorneys include vessel owners and former fisherman. We have personal experience in commercial fisheries, maritime insurance, and vessel ownership, as well as mechanical and regulatory experience from both the legal counselor's as well as the vessel owner's perspective.
We represent a significant number of current and former fishing vessel owners and fishermen, maritime contractors and vendors, and maritime associations in all matters of entity formation, vessel and fishing rights transactions, state or federal agency compliance and disputes, and litigation.
- Specific services we provide include:
- Entity formation and related services for the maritime industry, including corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, and cooperatives, including Fisherman's Cooperative Marketing Act cooperatives.
- Vessel transactions, including purchase and sale, financing and security arrangements, and charters.
- Crew contracts.
- Federal and State fishing rights transactions, including purchase and sale, transfers, financing and security arrangements, leases, and harvest agreements, for all kinds of limited access rights including limited entry or limited access licenses or permits, quota shares ("QS"), individual fishing quotas ("IFQ"), individual transferable quotas ("ITQ"), community development quotas ("CDQ"), vessel permits and licenses, and other federal and state licenses and permits.
- Maritime federal and state agency compliance and disputes, including application for and renewal of fishing rights or vessel licenses or permits, and agency claims and appeals.
- Maritime vendor contracts and terms and conditions.
- Maritime liens and collections.
- Maritime claims, including Jones Act, seaworthiness, personal injury, negligence, defective work and equipment, and marine salvage.
- Wills, estate, and survivorship planning involving fishing rights and vessels.
- Administration and probate of estates involving fishing rights and vessels.