A maritime lawyer works as part of the legal system
referred to as admiralty law which deals with people, companies, vehicles and
business transactions that take place in international and territorial waters.
Therefore, in this capacity, the maritime lawyer represents the interest of
ocean related business. This entails professions like longshoremen, seamen,
marine suppliers, yacht brokers and other operators whose work takes place in
the ocean. In addition, admiralty or maritime law applies to offshore platforms
and the incident that occurs on them. A maritime lawyer’s education must
comprise knowledge of laws pertaining to recreational boating, collision at sea,
salvage claims, and other related activities.
Admiralty laws have been in existence since Greeks and
Egyptians started using the Mediterranean Sea for shipping and commerce. At
that time, special tribunals were established in the port towns alongside the
Mediterranean Sea explicitly to judge seafarer disputes. With time, legal sea
codes were written, standardized, and used in ports all over Europe.
Maritime attorneys in Rhode Island today practice law that
is a combination of new and old legal principles, having a scope that it is
both international and national. Old principles concerning the welfare of
seamen persist up to this day simply because the risks facing them having not
actually gone away even with modern shipping and safety technology. The law
pertaining to cargo handling and naval architecture and the kinds of vessels
used have changed over time. In addition, admiralty law has had to deliberate
liability matters around marine ecology damage and pollution, as an outcome of
some present seafaring practices.
Because international voyages are common place today, a
maritime lawyer has to work within the treaties established among countries
with regard to customs and shipping. These treaties form the main basis for
modern maritime law. In addition, an admiralty lawyer has to be conversant with
distinctive boating laws governing water related loss or casualties, which greatly
differ from laws that apply to land accidents or vehicles.
