Key point: The US Coast Guard’s new cybersecurity rule will transform the security standards and reporting requirements for vessels and marine facilities nationwide over the next three years. On July 16, 2025, the US Coast...more
As detailed through previous Holland & Knight alerts and blogs detailing the Notice of Proposed Rule Making and Consent Decree that postponed completion of the Vessel Incident Discharge (VID) final rule until fall 2024, the...more
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
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
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 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
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
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 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
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Coast Guard (“USCG”) continue to signal interest in addressing air pollution from large ships and ocean-going vessels. Since statements made by EPA personnel in...more
Note from the Editor - Spring seems to be upon us, at last. Perhaps we have no right to complain about the weather, but that has never stopped us! It seems like our New York, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia offices...more
General - 1 Which are the key ports in your jurisdiction and what sort of facilities do they comprise? What is the primary purpose of the ports? The US has a large and diverse marine terminal industry. In terms of...more
• The Federal Maritime Commission Authorization Act of 2017 was signed into law by President Donald Trump on Dec. 4, 2018, marking the first substantive revision to the U.S. Shipping Act, 46 U.S.C. § 40101 et seq. (the...more
The International Maritime Organization (“IMO”), in preparing for the global 0.5 percent fuel oil sulfur limit, recently adopted an amendment to MARPOL Annex VI to support consistent implementation and enforcement of the new...more
Note from the Vice Chair - Happy fall! As the seasons change, so do the issues confronting the maritime industry...or not. Over the past few years, several topics have consistently remained in the headlines and as a thorn...more
Ballast Water Management: The Conundrum Continues - It has been about 15 months since the U.S. Coast Guard (“USCG”) type-approved the first three ballast water management systems (“BWMSs”) in December 2016; three more...more
On March 19, 2018, the U.S. Coast Guard published its long-awaited final rule on Marine Casualty Reporting Property Damage Thresholds. In what was widely viewed as a common-sense and non-controversial adjustment, the final...more
Note from the Maritime Industry Team - Large sectors of the maritime industry—especially offshore—remain in the doldrums, but it nonetheless has been a busy few months for our Blank Rome Maritime group. Our Washington,...more