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Blank Rome Maritime Practice Group and Co-Chair Receive Lexology’s 2024 North America Awards Blank Rome’s Maritime practice group, as well as Thomas H. Belknap, Jr., co-chair of the Maritime practice group, were recipients of Lexology’s 2024 North America Awards. <Read…
When Is a Contract Maritime and Why Is That Important?
Keith B. Letourneau ● In the Fifth Circuit, for the longest time, deciding whether a contract was maritime involved assessing a litany of factors derived from the court’s Davis & Sons v. Gulf Oil Corporation case, specifically: The above factors generally pertain…
Chevron Deference Tossed Overboard—What Does It Really Mean?
Jonathan K. Waldron, Dana S. Merkel, and Holli B. Packer ● The Supreme Court of the United States’ June 28, 2024, decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, 144 S. Ct. 2244 (2024), dealt a blow to the “Chevron deference.” Loper Bright eliminated…
USCG Considers Organism Viability Testing Methods to Achieve Type Approval of Ballast Water Management Systems
Jeanne M. Grasso and Holli B. Packer ● On August 21, 2024, the U.S. Coast Guard (“USCG”) outlined its intent to prepare the “Viability Testing Method Consideration for Acceptance Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (“PEIS”)” in the Federal Register (89 Fed.…
U.S. Department of Commerce Proposes Expanded Export Controls Targeting Military, Intelligence, and Law Enforcement End Users in China and Elsewhere
Anthony Rapa, Alan G. Kashdan, and Brendan S. Saslow ● Overview On July 29, 2024, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) issued proposed rules that would significantly expand controls under the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”)…
The Arctic Shipping Frontier: Regulatory and Operational Challenges to Consider
Vanessa C. DiDomenico ● Heavy fuel oil (“HFO”), commonly known as bunker fuel or residual fuel oil, has been widely used by vessels for decades due to its low cost and ready availability. However, due to its high sulfur and heavy…
EPA Signs Final Vessel Incidental Discharge National Standards of Performance Rule
Jeanne M. Grasso and Holli B. Packer ● On September 20, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) signed a highly anticipated final rule establishing national standards for incidental discharges from vessels into waters of the United States, albeit nearly four…
Risk Management Tools for Maritime Companies
COMPLIANCE AUDIT PROGRAM Blank Rome Maritime has developed a flexible, fixed-fee Compliance Audit Program to help maritime companies mitigate the escalating risks in the maritime regulatory environment. The program provides concrete, practical guidance tailored to your operations to strengthen your…
Hurricanes and Their Cost on the Maritime Industry
Keith B. Letourneau ● Aside from the destruction that flows from it, how does a hurricane along the Gulf Coast affect the maritime industry that operates hundreds of terminals and moves thousands of ocean-going ships and inland tows along its…