Maritime Expert Witness Services - Maritime Casualties

Fisher Maritime personnel are regularly called upon to analyze the causes of marine casualties and personal injuries, and then act as expert witnesses in litigation throughout the US and Canada. Over the years, Fisher Maritime's personnel have analyzed more than 250 such matters. (This is in addition to our primary mission involving shipbuilding and repair contract development, management, claims and litigation support work.)

We have analyzed a number of incidents including collisions, fires, falls, and injuries. Examples of specific cases in which we have have been involved include the following:

Dispute over marine insurance claim resulting from fire during construction
Intellectual property dispute over general arrangement plans and specifications
Injured crew member aboard a ferry
Valuation of a partially completed mega-yacht
Evaluating causes of massive coating rework on product tanker
Identifying reasons for non-performance of a special service vessel
Defending a shipyard from a cash-strapped owner who wants more work
Inappropriate specifications, not defective product, lead to coating failure
Incomplete basic design procedures caused delay; defending a subcontractor
Supplier of owner furnished equipment gets entangled in dispute between owner and shipyard
Contract termination for default
Separating the effects of shipyard misunderstandings from owner changes
Assessing productivity risks in series construction; saving shipyard $350 million
Defending a shipyard; changes not the same as underbid or rework
Alleged late engineering versus incomplete manufacturing
Late owner information impacts construction of a factory vessel
Inadequate engineering and integration of multiple suppliers
A crane malfunction
Unusual tank entry design on a chemical tanker
Hatch cover failure or other source of failure leads to major casualty
Shipyard environmental clean up costs

We have analyzed dozens of casualties since 1976, providing technical advice and expert witness services. Usually those matters are settled or resolved before going to trial. However, the following is a partial listing of cases in which Fisher Maritime personnel have been deposed or have testified in trial: