Overview

James H. Power is a partner in Holland & Knight's New York office and practices in the areas of international law, admiralty law, transportation law, environmental law, public law and general civil litigation. He focuses generally on marine casualties, cargo cases, charter party disputes, maritime liens, government bid protests, marine pollution, seamen's claims and variety of other maritime and non-maritime matters. Mr. Power has extensive experience handling large complex litigation cases and is presently senior counsel on the multi-billion dollar oil pollution spill case involving the vessel Prestige on behalf of the Kingdom of Spain. He argues motions in numerous Federal and State Courts and represents clients in federal mediation and in maritime arbitrations. Mr. Power conducts numerous onboard investigations for both civil and criminal claims against vessel interests.

Mr. Power assists lenders and buyers in the sale and acquisition of vessels and advises parties on various maritime and regulatory aspects involved in such transactions. He represented the secured lender in the high profile Millenium Seacarriers bankruptcy. Representation in this multi-tiered litigation involved a series of successful maritime lien priority judgments favorable to the secured lender.

Prior to entering practice, Mr. Power worked as an engineer in the maritime industry and as a licensed engineering officer onboard U.S. merchant vessels. Mr. Power is currently a lieutenant in the United States Naval Reserve. Mr. Power is serving as treasurer of Holland & Knight's political action committee (PAC).

Representative Experience

  • Pollution: represented the foreign sovereign nation of Spain in pursuing its claims against a ship's classification society and in defending the government's response to an oil spill pursuant to its National Contingency Plan following the sinking of the Prestige tanker in the Exclusive Economic Zone of Spain, which caused pollution damages of more than $1 billion; the litigation addressed important issues of federal maritime law and limits on the application of the Civil Liability Convention
  • Casualty: represented a facility owner following an incident in which a cement barge, the ING 4727, landed on housing on the dry side of a levee in an industrial canal as a result of Hurricane Katrina; our team conducted on-site investigations, hired experts and collected key evidence that would have otherwise been lost with the subsequent passage of Hurricane Rita

Credentials

Education
  • St. John's University School of Law, J.D.
  • United States Merchant Marine Academy, B.S., Marine Engineering
Bar Admissions/Licenses
  • New York
  • Republic of the Marshall Islands
Court Admissions
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
Memberships
  • United States Merchant Marine Academy, Port of New York Alumni Chapter, Vice President
  • New York Harbor School, Advisory Board
  • Bar Association of the City of New York, Transportation Committee, past Secretary
  • Bar Association of the City of New York, International Environmental Law Committee
Honors & Awards
  • Chambers Global – The World's Leading Lawyers for Business guide, Marshall Islands: General Business Law, 2022-2024
  • The Best Lawyers in America guide, Admiralty and Maritime Law, 2021-2024
  • The Legal 500 USA, Transport: Shipping - Litigation and Regulation, 2021, 2022
  • Chambers USA – America's Leading Business Lawyers guide, Transportation: Shipping/Maritime: Litigation (New York), 2011-2020
  • New York Super Lawyers magazine, 2012-2019

Publications

News