Swain & Dipolito offers the highest quality legal counsel to shipowners, P&I and FD&D Clubs, marine and casualty underwriters, and transportation and warehousing companies.
Founded in August of 1995, we combine over 50 years of maritime legal experience with practical knowledge in ship handling, seamanship, marine navigation, and vessel and terminal operations. Our founding partners learned their trade at some of the largest U.S. law firms, including Graham & James, Lillick & Charles, and Hills, Betts & Nash.
Admiralty and maritime law is the hallmark of our practice. Our attorneys are active members of the Maritime Law Association of the United States, as well as other major maritime trade and professional organizations. Our attorneys have served as port correspondence for shipowners, P&I Clubs and FD&D clubs.
We are located in downtown Long Beach, California, home of the largest port complex in North America - the Port of Long Beach/Los Angeles. All ships and terminals are within minutes of our offices and homes, which enables us to respond immediately to emergencies. We are also a short distance from San Diego to the south, and Port Hueneme, San Francisco, and Oakland to the north.
Since admiralty and maritime law is our focus, Swain & Dipolito maintains a very efficient and cost-effective approach to all phases of litigation. Our rates are extremely competitive for all types of maritime matters, including personal injury, carriage of goods, environmental pollution, casualties, FD&D, hull and machinery claims, and immigration, customs, and shipping regulations.
Maritime Personal Injury
We represent shipowners and charterers in seaman and passenger suits, as well as longshore and harbor worker personal injury cases. Our experience includes investigations aboard containerships, tankers, bulk carriers, cruise ships, and fishing vessels, and at marine terminals.
We handle many cases involving severe injuries as well as emotionally charged and sensitive cases, such as burns and fatalities. We strive to simplify complex facts, law, and medical causation issues, so as to minimize sympathy and maximize success at trial. We work very closely with our clients, experts, witnesses, and graphics and trial consultants to insure a clear, understandable, and persuasive presentation of the ship owner's defense to the trier of fact.
Carriage of Goods
Our attorneys have handled hundreds of cargo damage suits in state and federal courts. We have vast experience with U.S. COGSA, the Pomerene Act, the Hague Rules, COGWA, the Interstate Commerce Act, and other governing carriage legislation.
We represent several major ocean carriers which call in Southern California. We have enforced many stipulated and statutory defenses of ocean carriers by educating judges on the esoteric aspects of maritime carriage law with clear and concise pleadings and motions.
Swain & Dipolito vigorously litigates against rail carriers, trucking companies, and subcontractors in shipowner indemnity claims arising out of through carriage. In all our cargo cases, we carefully tailor our discovery and motion practice to test the particular issues raised by the claim at hand, with a view toward a quick resolution of the dispute without unnecessary litigation expense.
Environmental Pollution
Our attorneys have been involved in major oil spills and Clean Water Act litigation in California. We also coordinate clean-up response, and represent vessel interests in civil and criminal penalty proceedings before courts and regulatory agencies.
We work closely with our surveyors, clean-up contractors, and the U.S. Coast Guard to minimize civil and criminal penalties, clean-up costs, and environmental damage. In Long Beach and Los Angeles criminal courts, we have negotiated the civil compromise of criminal charges brought against shipowners for oil spills, improper carriage of hazardous materials, and deficient shipping documentation.
We aggressively monitor clean-up costs on behalf of owners and P&I Clubs. We have saved shipowners hundreds of thousands of dollars in clean-up expenses, using our knowledge of labor and equipment rates, and overhead costs of clean-up contractors in our area.
We have also prosecuted CERCLA actions against cargo interests arising out of container spillage, defended against citizen suits under the Clean Water Act, and handled MARPOL penalty proceedings and appeals.
Collision and Major Casualties
Due to our knowledge of shiphandling, seamanship and marine investigation, Swain & Dipolito is uniquely qualified to investigate and handle major maritime casualties, as well as resulting general average claims, limitation of liability actions, hull and cargo damage claims, and U.S. Coast Guard investigations.
Our experience includes collision, allision, heavy weather damage, shipboard fires, explosions, strandings, and sinkings. Our practical experience with vessel management, COLREGS, pilotage tariffs, and government regulations allow us to respond knowledgeably to a marine casualty.
We also frequently assist other maritime defense counsel by conducting follow-up investigation in Southern California. Accordingly, our ability to service shipowners and P&I Clubs is not limited to local casualties, but includes casualties which occurred elsewhere.
Freight, Demurrage and Defense
Although most charterparty disputes are subject to arbitration in other jurisdictions, we are frequently asked to assist London solicitors and New York arbitration counsel in obtaining security in California for arbitration awards.
We defend shipowners in vessel arrests arising out of bunkering, wharfage, pilotage, stevedoring, and other maritime contract or lien claims. Importantly, we also prosecute freight collection cases under ocean bills of lading and charterparties, where no arbitration forum is stipulated. In 1997, we collected over $1 million in ocean freight for shipowners.
We are well-versed in the maritime pleading and practice tools necessary to effect an efficient seizure or release of a vessel, or other tangible or intangible property. Our firm has considerable expertise in state and maritime attachment procedures, as well as California post-judgment execution remedies. When necessary, we vigorously pursue maritime debtors in bankruptcy court, and we are familiar with local U.S. Bankruptcy Court rules, discovery, and motion practice.
Hull and Machinery Claims
Swain & Dipolito represents vessel owners and marine underwriters in hull and machinery claims involving loss or damage to ships, fishing vessels, work boats, and pleasure craft. We defend and prosecute hull and machinery claims in state and federal courts.
Based on our training in U.S. and British marine insurance law and our experience, we are able to provide comprehensive legal advice in respect of insurance coverage disputes, contract formation issues (representations and warranties), unexplained sinkings, and damage calculation and vessel repair. We also have experience with California insurance law, and we are mindful at all times of the rules and regulations governing a marine underwriter?s handling of a first-party hull and machinery claim.
Immigration, Customs, and Shipping Regulation
Swain & Dipolito offers immigration and other corporate assistance to foreign shipowners seeking to place foreign citizens with U.S. subsidiary companies. We also handle matters involving stowaways, crewmembers seeking refuge or political asylum, and related civil penalty and repatriation problems. Our attorneys have handled U.S. Customs seizures and drug and contraband smuggling cases. We can also guide shipowners through regulatory proceedings and rate issues before the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission.
