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Could any Maritime Lawyers share their experience/thoughts on Maritime Law?
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Hello All,
I am currently a second year law student. I'm considering future options/pathways and Maritime law has caught my eye as it seems distinct/different from the popular pathways such as corporate etc.
I was wondering if any practicing maritime lawyers here could give me their thoughts/opinions about the area? Do you recommend more students to consider the area? Is there anything I should really consider/reflect on before focusing my efforts to Maritime law?
Thanks!
Top Comment: Shipping is brilliant if you really like the study of law, and you're willing to forgo the prospect of ever earning truly top-end money. It is, as far as I am aware, the most academically interesting area of law practiced in major city firms. Much, if not most, of English commercial law comes from decisions in shipping cases, and maritime disputes still regularly find their way into the court of appeal and supreme court. So if you like contract or commercial law at university, and you want to keep doing real law but not be a barrister, maritime litigation is your best bet. I may be biased though. The downside is that pay in a shipping firm, or in the shipping department of a full-service firm, will never compete with the magic circle, let alone US firms. But in the smaller firms the hours are a bit better (although not a 9 - 6 or anything like it!). Fudgey fairly points out that one of the big beasts of the market recently went bust, but that was much more to do with Ince's mismanagement over a decade or more than it was to do with the practice area. Their internal financial controls and accounting was an absolute mess. Admittedly the thing that pushed them to the edge was the marked slowdown in hull insurance work in the middle to end of last decade; but their reliance on that work was mismanagement in its own right. The other shipping firms are mostly doing relatively well, although they are struggling to inflate rates at the same speed as the wider City market, so their pay will continue to fall a bit behind.
Becoming a Maritime Lawyer
Main Post:
Hi all,
Hoping some maritime lawyers might be able to help me out.
Ideally I'm trying to get into the maritime space in Norway/Scandinavia, and am currently in the process of picking which LLM to study this year.
Unfortunately, I did not receive an offer to study at UiO but I have received an offer from University of Cork in Ireland. I am also planning on applying for the LLM at Southhampton.
I guess my question is how competitive an LLM in Maritime Law from Cork would be in the broader EU context (with some focus on Scandinavia).
Is it worth to wait for a response from Southampton?
Thanks everyone!
Top Comment: I guess my expertise is limited, but out of the two maritime lawyers I know (one partner and one mid associate, both with overseas experience (pun intended)), neither has an LLM. On the contrary, the only person with a maritime LLM I know is an academic and has nothing to do with the legal profession. I’m not saying it’s impossible an LLM is beneficial here given the niche nature of this sector, but it’s also not entirely unlikely it’s as worthless as any other LLM.
I played golf with a Maritime Attorney
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I understand this is a totally useless post but had nobody to share it with.
During a round of golf last week I got paired up with a retired gentleman and with golf comes four hours of getting to know somebody to pass the time. During this he talked about his background in the Merchant Marines then went to law school where he eventually had a fruitful career as a..... Maritime Attorney
At which point I froze in my shoes as I honestly wasn't even aware that was an actual profession.
The remainder hour of the round I had "You're a crook Captain Hook...." rotating in my brain.
/end of my useless post
Top Comment: Was his name Chareth Cutestory?
r/u_buzbeelawfirm0 on Reddit: Maritime Lawyer | Offshore Injury Attorney
Main Post: r/u_buzbeelawfirm0 on Reddit: Maritime Lawyer | Offshore Injury Attorney
What is admiralty/maritime practice like?
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I’ve heard people say they really liked this work, but there isn’t much out there on it?
What are the clients like?
Any travel?
Comp below/at/above average?
No. I’m not a sovereign citizen.
Top Comment: super small super profitable industry. Firms tend to be highly dynastic. Lots of "the IV" guys running firms. Very hard to break into without connections. lots of jones act stuff.
How do I become a Maritime Lawyer?
Main Post: How do I become a Maritime Lawyer?
Top Comment:
donot think it’s a good area.
Does anyone know a good Maritime attorney?
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My cousin went on a cruise and got a bad injury and it was the ships fault. It’s all documented and he/she was out of work 8 months and had to get several surgeries. But it upheaved their life so bad that they haven’t had a chance to research lawyers. Honestly I think they are having a mental block as it was a lot to go through and it really put them under in lots of ways. Imagine not being able to work for that long. I have done some online searches but I’m not coming up with much. Are there resources for people who have been injured on a cruise ship? It would be nice if they could be held accountable. I’m not saying any details in case it could mess up an injury case.
Top Comment:
Depending on the cruise line, your contract tells you where litigation must take place. Usually in a country where the laws favor the cruise line.