In a pollution case that continues to be under investigation, the chief engineer of a Marshall Islands bulk carrier has been sentenced to prison for deliberately discharging approximately 10,000 gallons of oil-contaminated bilge water overboard in U.S. waters off the coast of New Orleans last year, and for obstructing justice. The illegal conduct was first reported to the Coast Guard by a crew member via social media.
The Honorable Nannette Jolivette Brown sentenced Russian national Kirrill...
A federal jury in the District of Columbia has convicted the former Director of Operations of the U.S. Navy’s Military Sealift Command office in Busan, South Korea, for his role in a bribery conspiracy and for lying to federal investigators.
The Department of Justice’s Criminal Division says that, according to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Fernando Xavier Monroy, 64, of Brentwood, N.Y., engaged in a conspiracy to commit bribery with the owner of DK Marine, a South Korea-based...
https://www.marinelog.com/legal-safety/former-senior-msc-official-convicted-in-bribery-case/
Bollinger Shipyards had a significant contract win back in April when it was awarded a $13,725,953 Navy contract for the production of the Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vessel (MCM USV), engineering services and other direct costs.
If all options are exercised the contract has a potential total value of nearly $123 million.
The contract was competitively procured with three offers received, and the Navy’s selection of Bollinger did not sit well with one of the other competitors, Textron...
West P&I has appointed Gina Panayiotou as its environmental, social and governance (ESG) manager. In that role she will be responsible for reviewing the P&I club’s approach to sustainability, people and governance, and for developing and implementing a strategy that supports its commitment to ESG.
A maritime lawyer, Panayiotou has held senior roles ranging from legal manager at a leading shipowner to global head of shipping and energy for a multijurisdictional law firm and in-house legal counsel...
https://www.marinelog.com/legal-safety/shipping/west-pi-appoints-esg-manager/
Gothenburg, Sweden-headquartered marine mutual insurer the Swedish Club says that a recent U.K. Supreme Court ruling underscores how important it is for a ship’s master to fully understand the implications of signing a bill of lading.
The court’s Tai Prize ruling reiterates the legal principle that a master must sign a bill of lading only if it accurately describes the condition of the cargo, irrespective of any commercial pressures he or she may be facing.
While leading law firms will no doubt...
https://www.marinelog.com/legal-safety/bills-of-lading-be-careful-what-you-sign/
Seattle, Wash., based Centerline Logistics reports that, following a month-long jury trial in Washington State Superior Court (King County), the company and its co-defendants, including CEO Matthew Godden and co-owner, Macquarie Capital, prevailed on every count in a lawsuit brought against them by former CEO Harley Franco.
Franco filed that suit after being terminated for cause by the board of directors of the company, then known as Harley Marine Services.
“We are happy to have this baseless...
https://www.marinelog.com/inland-coastal/coastal/centerline-logistics-prevails-in-franco-lawsuit/
In a case stemming from the August 21, 2017, collision between the USS John S McCain and the tanker Alnic MC, U.S. District Judge Paul Crotty ruled yesterday that the United States was 80% responsible for the collision and that the owner of the Alnic, Energetic Tank Inc., was 20% responsible.
Ten sailors aboard the USS John S McCain died in the accident and 48 were injured when the ships collided in the Middle Channel passage of the Singapore Strait Traffic Separation Scheme.
There were no...
The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy cadet formerly known only as “Midshipman X” has now revealed her identity. She is Hope Hicks and is one of two USMAA students who yesterday filed related complaints against Maersk Line Limited in New York state court.
The complaints, filed on the plaintiffs’ behalf by law firms Sanford Heisler Sharp and Maritime Legal Solutions, allege that Maersk failed to adequately protect USMMA midshipmen from sexual assault and sexual harassment while working aboard Maersk...
The 51-year-old master of the 38,763 dwt Marshall Islands flagged bulk carrier Interlink Veracity was arrested yesterday by the Australian Federal Police (AFP). The man, a national of Montegro, was expected to be brought before a court in South Hedland, Western Australia, today. for his alleged role in a plot to import 320 kilograms of cocaine into Australia.
After his arrest aboard the ship, the man was charged with importing a commercial quantity of border controlled drugs, namely cocaine. The...
U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Andrews for the District of Delaware yesterday sentenced Athens-based Liquimar Tankers Management Services Inc. and Evridiki Navigation Inc. to a total $3 million in criminal fines, and a five-year period of probation. Evridiki was fined $2 million and Liquimar was fined $1 million.
The corporations were sentenced after being convicted at trial on all charges, including violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, falsifying ships’ documents,...
https://www.marinelog.com/legal-safety/ocean-outlaws-hit-with-3-million-in-fines/