Maritime and Offshore Emergency Response
Our Maritime and Offshore Emergency Response Team operates on a global basis and has world-class experience in the practical and legal handling of marine and offshore casualties and emergencies.
Consisting of seasoned admiralty lawyers and ex-mariners, we assist insurers, owners, charterers and other stakeholders in connection with a wide range of incidents, including collisions, groundings, capsizings, fires, pollution, salvage and wreck removals globally and with particular expertise in Europe, Asia, South-America and Africa.
With our team being strategically placed across locations in Europe and Asia, we can be on site at very short notice and are available to assist clients 24/7, 365 days a year. We are also able to investigate incidents and collect evidence remotely.
We offer immediate incident reconstructions and recommendations on strategy for the practical handling of the incident, as well as the handling of claims and other legal consequences.
We provide in-depth post-casualty analysis, including on causation and legal aspects, and overall management of claims on a global basis, whether in respect of official inquiries, negotiations, mediations and litigation in any jurisdiction.
We offer
- Overall casualty management (physical and remote handling)
- Shipboard investigation, taking witness statements and collecting evidence
- Analysing VDR, ECDIS, AIS and CCTV data, preparing incident reconstructions etc.
- Rapid initial assessment of facts and legal issues
- Contact and liaison with authorities
- Assisting owners with reports to flag state, port authorities, oil majors etc.
- Support to owners’ and insurers’ response teams
- Crew and owner protection
- Advice on media response
- Forum selection, choice of law, limitation of liability, guarantees/security and arrest, including preliminary assessment of claims in respect of cargo damage, pollution, salvage, wreck removal, general average etc.
- Retaining and cooperating with technical experts, for example fire, pollution and navigation experts, naval architects etc.
- Salvage and wreck removal – strategic advice, negotiating and drafting contracts etc.
- Lead counsel on multi-jurisdiction casualties
- Sea-going experience and knowledge
Our emergency response team regularly assists in high-profile cases:
- YM Mobility – Explosion and fire, Ningbo, China
- Toconao – Stack collapse and nurdle pollution, Bay of Biscay
- Northern Juvenile – Containership fire off Indonesia
- Angel – Containership sinking, Taiwan
- Naga 7 – Wreck removal, Malaysia
- Marina K – Grounding, Venezuela
- West Courageous – Wreck removal, Mexico
- Scandi Buzios – Fire, Brazil
- Stena Scandica – Fire, Baltic Sea
- Helge c/w Wild Cosmos – Collision, Denmark
- Emslift Hendrika – Salvage, Norway
- Transcarrier – Loss of nurdles, Germany/Norway
- Kaami – Grounding, wreck removal, off Scotland
- Viking Sky – Blackout, heavy weather, claims, Norway
- Hardhaus – Capsizing, Denmark
- KNM Helge Ingstad c/w Sola TS – Refloating of navy frigate, claims, Norway
- Bilbao Knutsen c/w STI Pimlico, Huelva, Spain
- Northguider – Grounding, removal, Spitzbergen, Svalbard
- Antea c/w Star Centurion – Total loss, claims, Indonesia
- Bukhta Naezdnik – Fire, capsizing, wreck removal, Norway
- Furevik – Anchor dragging, sub-sea cable damage, Norway
- Shinyo Ocean c/w Aseem – Collision, Fujairah
- Geos – Explosion on offshore exploration drill ship, fatality, wreck removal, Malaysia
- Fisktrans – Sinking, Norway
- Cheshire – Decomposition of fertiliser, total loss, off Gran Canaria
- Stolt Gulf Mishref – Loss of propulsion of parcel tanker, GA, cargo issues, Red Sea
- TS Taipei – Grounding and wreck removal of bulk carrier, pollution, cargo, Taiwan
- SE Pantea – Wreck removal, China
- Stolt Commitment c/w Thorco Cloud – Wreck removal, cargo claims, multi-jurisdiction litigation, Singapore Strait, Indonesia
- Britannia Seaways – Fire, cargo damage, Norway
- Fair Afroditi – Explosion, sale of oil tanker, Lomé, Togo
- Troll Solution – Capsizing of jack-up rig; fatalities, wreck removal, Gulf of Mexico
- Sorrento – Fire on ro-ro passenger vessel, CTL, cargo damage, off Mallorca
- Goodfaith – Grounding of bulk carrier; wreck removal, Andros, Greece
- FPSO Cidade de Sao Mateus – Explosion, fatalities, salvage, Espírito Santo Basin, Brazil
- USNS Sgt Matej Kocak – Grounding and salvage off Okinawa, Japan
- Asian Empire – Fire and salvage of car carrier, cargo damage, Pacific Ocean
- Luno – Wreck removal of grounded bulk carrier, Bayonne, France
- Chamarel– Wreck removal of grounded cable laying vessel, Namibia
- Floatel Superior – Drifting of floatel platform, Norway
- Gelso M – Wreck removal of grounded chemical tanker, Italy
- Bareli – Grounding of container ship; oil pollution, cargo damage, wreck removal, China
- Rena – Wreck removal of grounded container ship, New Zealand
- B Oceania – Wreck removal of bulk carrier; c/w MV Xin Tai Hai, Malacca Strait
- Godafoss – Grounding; oil pollution, GA, salvage of container ship, Norway
- Jupiter 1 – Wreck removal of capsized semisub accommodation rig, Gulf of Mexico
- West Atlas – Wreck removal of drilling rig; blowout and fire, Timor Sea, Australia
- Full City – Grounding; oil pollution, refloating of bulk carrier, Norway
- Crete Cement – Grounding, wreck removal, Norway
- Bourbon Dolphin – Capsizing and total loss of anchor handler; casualties, Shetland
- Repubblica di Genova – Refloating and sale of capsized roro ship; cargo damage, Belgium
- Ocean Victory – Grounding, total loss, Japan
- Cembay – Grounding on coral reef; salvage of cement carrier, oil pollution, cargo damage, Mexico
- Big Orange XVII – Well stimulation vessel c/w platform, Ekofisk field, North Sea
- Server – Grounding; oil pollution, wreck removal of bulk carrier, Norway
- Alaska Rainbow – Cargo ship c/w passenger ferry, River Mersey, England
- Hyundai No. 105 – Car carrier c/w VLCC Kaminesan; tripartite collision, cargo damage, wreck removal, Singapore Strait
