Cruise Law News : Maritime Lawyer & Attorney : James M. Walker : Walker & O'Neill Law Firm : Admiralty Law, Cruise Ship Accidents & Injuries

A lot of people ask me how I became involved practicing maritime law. 

Thirty years ago, I started law school at Tulane School of Law in New Orleans, Louisiana.  I may be biased, but Tulane has the best law school in the United States involving maritime studies. Tulane has a renowned "Admiralty and Maritime Law" program which is part of the Tulane Maritime Law Center.

Tulane is where I took my introductory maritime courses (Admiralty I and Admiralty II), maritime jurisdiction, maritime personal injury and death, maritime insurance and "offshore operations" -  a particularly excellent course addressing personal injury and death cases in the oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico.

Tulane is the home of the Tulane Maritime Law Journal (previously called has the Maritime Lawyer) which is described in Wikipedia as the "preeminent student-edited law journal in the field of Admiralty and Maritime Law."  

The professors teaching the maritime law courses were excellent.  A professor named Thomas Schoenbaum taught the introductory maritime course.  He went on to write the famous maritime law hornbook - "Admiralty and Maritime Law."  A number of the maritime personal injury courses were taught by maritime lawyers, including the Honorable Eldon Fallon who was a well known personal injury lawyer and then became a highly respected Federal Court Judge in New Orleans.      

After graduating from Tulane law school, in 1983 I joined the Maritime Law Association. Since 1983, I have been practicing maritime law - mostly personal injury and death cases.  

I have a lot of fond memories of attending maritime law classes at Tulane.  Its hard to think that was three decades ago!  

Tulane also sponsors the Admiralty Law Institute every other year, which is always a good excuse to make a trip back to New Orleans.

You can follow Tulane's maritime program on Twitter @TulaneMaritime. 

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Jim Walker is a maritime lawyer who has attended seven Congressional hearing on issues of cruise ship crime, passenger disappearances, and passenger safety.  Jim has been involved in cruise ship law and maritime litigation since 1983.  Based in Miami, Florida, Jim is a well known maritime lawyers in the U.S. He represents passengers and crew members injured or assaulted on cruise ships around the world.

This year (2013) Jim has been the "go to" maritime lawyer when things go wrong on the high seas.

Just in 2013, Jim has appeared in the following television shows, newspapers and radio programs: CNN Opinion's "What Cruise Lines Don't Want You to Know", AP's "No Central Agency Oversees, Inspects Cruise Ships,"  WGN Radio (Chicago), Miami Herald, Newsday's "Carnival Triumph: First Lawsuit Filed in Cruise Ship Fiasco," Wall Street Journal Law Blog's "Why Suing Carnival Could be a Waste," Reuters, American Bar Journal's "Cruise Ship Fires Occur with ‘Alarming Frequency,’ Maritime Lawyer Says;" Forbes' "Ship Isn't The Only Thing That Stinks At Carnival: Low Tax Rate Stirs Ire," WWL Radio (New Orleans) "Cruise Ship Safety," CNN Travel's "Lawsuit Filed Over 'Floating Hell' Cruise" (Video), U.K's Daily Mail, ABC News' 20/20 "Troubled Waters" (Video), CNBC's Squawk on the Street's "Carnival & Legal Obligations" (Video), CTV's "Will Compensation Keep Cruise Ship Lawsuits at Bay?, Business Insider's "Passengers On Stranded Cruise Ship Are Camping On Deck And Waiting In Line For Food," Times of Malta's "International Lawyer Praises Malta on Cruise Liner Tragedy," Bloomberg's "Carnival Ship Fire Strands 3,100 Guests Off Mexican Coast,"  Sun Sentinel's "Carnival Cruise Nightmare: Why Evacuation is not an Option," America Public Media's "Worst Cruise Ever: Can I Sue?;" Yahoo Finance's "Cruise Ship Fire Highlights Past Incidents."

The GO-TO CRUISE LAW ATTORNEY FOR 2013 - FEATURED IN OVER 60 TELEVISION, CABLE NEWS, RADIO, DOCUMENTARY, MAGAZINE & NEWSPAPER ARTICLES AND PROGRAMS ABOUT CRUISE SHIP ACCIDENTS THIS YEAR . . .

Rush Limbaugh's "Media Targets Evil Carnival Cruise Company," Insurance Journal, Travel Blackboard, Local 10 News (Miami), Business Insider's "Good Luck Finding Out If The Cruise Ship You're Traveling On Is Safe," South Florida Business Journal"s "New Twists in Boozing and Ocean Cruising," ABC's 20/20 "Troubled Waters" (Video), U.K. Daily Mail, Times of Malta's International Lawyer Praises Malta on Cruise Liner Tragedy," Business Journalism's "Cruise Ship Saga: Business Story Angles and Resources," ABC News' "Death of Cruise Ship Singer Jackie Kastrinelis Remains a Mystery," KRPC TV (Houston) "Local 2 Investigates Carnival Cruise Fires" (Video), U.K. Daily Mail's "First Passenger Sues Cruise Line Over 'Horrifying' Conditions on Stricken Carnival Vessel," WOR 710 Radio (New York), Thomson Reuters' Triumph Passengers Bring Class Action Against Carnival," Seattle Times' Cruise Lawsuits Are In, But Carnival Has Advantage," Travel Weekly's "Triumph Suits Add to CCL's Woes," Newsweek's "Carnival Cruise from Hell," Daily Business Review: "Justice Watch: Triumph Passengers Face a Sea of Issues," Travel agent Central's "Update on Carnival Triumph - Lawsuits Filed, One First-Timer Weighs In," CBS Peter Greenberg "Why It’s Hard for Passengers to Sue Post-Carnival Triumph," Local 10 (Miami) "3 Carnival Cruise Line fires since Nov. 2010" (video), Travel agent Central's Can Victims of Costa Concordia Sue in the U.S.?, Daily Business Review's and National Law Journal's "Federal Judge Sends Concordia Lawsuits back to Miami-Dade," CruiseMates' "Cruise Ship System Failures," Quaratz's "One of the Secrets to Carnival Cruise’s Unsinkable Business Model: Free Coast Guard Rescues," Philadelphia Inquiry's "Pregnant?You May not be Able to Cruise," South Florida Business Journal's "Carnival Shares Drop with Reputation Under Assault," CBS Baltimore's "FBI Investigating Suspicious Death On Cruise Ship That Set Sail From Baltimore," International Business Times' "Cruise Ship Death: FBI Probes Suspicious Death Aboard Royal Caribbean Baltimore Cruise," MSN News' "Cruise Ship Death Spotlights Murky Waters of Fatalities at Sea;" Cruising Done Right's "Maritime Lawyer Raises Questions," NBC Rock Center with Brian Williams' "Carnival CEO Comes Under Congressional Heat" - Watch NBC Video here; South Florida Business Review's April Fool's Day: Carnival Will incorporate in the United States, NBC's "Would Your Cruise Have Fewer Problems if Americans Ran It?," E-Travel Blackboard's US law firm spends $3 million to charter cruise ship;" NBC's "Family Seeks More Answers in Disappearance of Man From Cruise Ship;" Huffington's Post's "Paul Rossington, Missing Carnival Cruise Passenger, May Have Been Trying To Rescue Girlfriend Kristen Schroder;" Seattle Times' Taking a Hard Look at Cruise-Ship Problems:" CNN's "FBI to Review Honeymooner's 2005 Cruise Ship Death;" Boston Herald's "Murder, Crime Warnings in Nassau;" The Economic Times' "How Normal are Cruise Ship Mishaps Like Fires and Power Failures?; eTravel Blackboard (Australia)'s "Cruise Lawyer Says Bridge Being Unaware of Man Overboard Situations Should Not Happen;" The Slant's "Carnival is Taking on Water But Don't Abandon Ship;" KGW News Station (Oregon) Salem Cruise Passenger Missing and Presumed Drowned."
 

In 2012, Jim appeared on ABC's 20/20 special on the Costa Concordia disaster. He appeared on Australia's Dateline program "Lost at Sea" about passengers and crew members disappearing from cruise ships. Jim was featured on PBS's documentary "Diasasters at Sea: Why Ships Sink" which looked at cruise disasters from the Titanic's sinking in 1912 to the current date. He also appeared on CNN's special "Cruise to Disaster" which explored the Concordia disaster. 

Jim attended Duke University and graduated cum laude in 1980.  He attended Tulane University School of Law, graduating in 1983 after taking Tulane’s internationally renowned admiralty curriculum.

Jim has experience regarding issues of cruise ship crime and sexual assault.  Over the past ten years, he has represented over 1,000 clients including over 75 individuals who have been victimized on cruise ships, cruise excursions and ports of call.  Six of Jim’s clients have testified before the United States Congress regarding cruise ship safety.  Jim has handled the following cases in the past ten years: 

• The case of Laurie Dishman, sexually assaulted on Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas. Her case resulted in changes to the cruise industry and the introduction of the Cruise Ship Safety and Security Act of 2010.  
• The “Missing Honeymooner Case” involving the disappearance of George Smith IV of Greenwich Connecticut from Royal Caribbean’s Brilliance of the Seas cruise ship. Jim represented Mr. Smith’s widow, Jennifer Hagel.
• Over 75 sexual assault cases against women and children on cruise ships, resulting in many million and multi-million dollars settlements.  
• The 2006 Star Princess fire disaster.  The cruise ship fire resulted in one hundred cabins being destroyed and the death of one passenger, Richard Liffridge.  Jim represented Mr. Liffridge’s family in litigation against Princess Cruises in California.
• Numerous cases involving serious injury and death of passengers and crew members aboard Carnival, Celebrity, Costa, Norwegian, Oceania, Princess and Royal Caribbean cruise ships.

Jim is married to Lisa O’Neill who he met while they were undergraduates in college thirty years ago. Jim and Lisa are also law partners.

Lisa is also a Duke cum laude graduate, and attended the University of Florida School of Law in Gainesville, Florida.  She served on Law Review as the Senior Articles Editor, won the prestigious Gertrude Brick Award, and graduated cum laude. Jim and Lisa work on all cases together.

In 1999, the firm created the web site CruiseLaw.com as an information resource for passengers and crew members worldwide.   Here is what some publications are saying about Jim Walker: 

"Top Maritime Lawyer" - ABA Journal.

"Top Cruise Lawyer" - USA Today.

"Prominent Private Practice Maritime Attorney" - Fox News.

"A Premier Lawyer for Cruise Passengers" - Reuters.

"Prominent Cruise Plaintiff Attorney" - Law.com (America Law Media).

"Leading Miami Attorney" - Newsweek Magazine

"Leading Maritime Lawyer in Miami" - Arizona Republic  / USA Today

"An Outspoken and Candid Maritime Attorney Who has Represented Some of the Highest Profile Cruise Plaintiffs in History" - CruiseMates

"Internationally Renowned Maritime Lawyer and Cruise Safety Advocate" - Times of Malta

"Man For the Other Team" - International Shipping Publication Tradewinds. 

"Prominent Florida-Based Lawyer for Cruise Ship Passenger" - Staten Island Live.

"Leading U.S. Based Cruise Lawyer" - eTravel Blackboard (Australia)

"Perpetual Pain-In-The-Cruise-Lines-Neck Jim Walker" - Gadling.

Jim is the author of Cruise Law News - described as a "Hard-Hitting Blog" by  Miami's Daily Business Review. 

The U.K. Metro newspaper refers to Jim as the "Devil of Cruise Reporting."

Professional Associations

• Admiralty Law Committee of the Florida Bar (former member)
• American Association for Justice, Admiralty Law Section
• Florida Admiralty Trial Lawyers Association
• Maritime Law Association of the United States
• Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum
• Southeast Admiralty Law Institute

Education

• Kent School, Kent Connecticut 1976
• Duke University, Durham North Carolina 1980
• Tulane School of Law, New Orleans Louisiana 1983

Bar Admissions

• Florida Bar Association
• Louisiana Bar Association (not active) 
• United States District Courts, Eastern District of Louisiana and Southern District of Florida

Media, Television, Radio, Magazines and Newspapers

Jim and his clients have been featured well over a hundred times on television, cable news and radio shows, as well as in documentaries, newspapers and magazine articles.

ABC, CBS, MSNBC, CNN, FOXNews, DATELINE, 48 HOURS, 20/20, Larry King Live, A & E Investigative Reports, Hannity & Colmes, Greta Van Sustern, Nancy Grace, Inside Edition, Julie Banderas, Big Story Weekend, CourtTV, Catherine Crier, Montel Williams, Joe Scarborough, Rita Cosby, Mike & Juliet, Geraldo Rivera, Nancy Bloom, Dan Abrams, UK’s BBC-Radio 4, Heartland w/John Kasich, E! Entertainment, TruTV, Canada’s CATV-5, Good Morning America, TIME Magazine, National Law Journal, RADAR Magazine, Lawyer’s Weekly USA, Miami Herald, American Law Media, Tradewinds, Fort Lauderdale’s Sun-Sentinel, Miami Business Review, LA Times, NY Times, Salt Lake Tribune, Florida Today, Daytona Beach Journal, Sacramento Bee, Washington Post, Greenwich Times, Greenwich Citizen, Greenwich Post, San Francisco Chronicle, U.K.'s Telegraph, St. Petersburg Times, Miami’s New Times, U.K. Mirror, London’s Guardian, Edmonton Post, Chicago Sun-Times, Bahamas Journal, Italy's "Chi l'ha Visto?" television show, Germany's Wunderwelt Wisen, CruiseCritic, South Florida Business Journal, Open Secrets organization, Queerty, Baltimore Sun, Bahamas Tribune, National Public Radio (NPR), USA Today, Gadling, FOX Business, Slate Magazine, ABA Journal, Australia's The Age, Attorney at Law Magazine, Huffington Post, U.K.'s Daily Mail, BBC, Freeport (Bahamas) News, Haaretz, Trip Advisor, Wikipedia, Palm Beach Post, India Times, E Turbo News, Global Travel News, Comunidade News (Brazil), Canada's CTV, OutFront with CNN's Erin Burnett, Slate, The Daily, London's Financial Times, Newsweek Magazine, Newsweek's The Daily Beast Blog, Fund Web, Reuters, Consumer Affairs, Australia's Herald Sun, Canada's NewsTalk 1010 Radio, Houston Chronicle, Wall Street Journal, Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), Tampa Bay Business Journal, Perez Hilton, Business Insider, Greenwich Magazine, Herald Sun, CNN Money, the Australian newspaper, Christian Science Monitor, International Business Times, Maritime Executive, Businessweek, Bloomberg, Alaska Dispatch, Minnesota Post, Virgin Islands Daily News, Arizona Republic, Trip Advisor, Daily Kos, Jamaica's Gleaner newspaper, Antigua Observer, N.Y. Daily News, U.K.'s Daily Mail, UPI, Inquisitr, Christian Post, KTIC Radio, Cordova Times, Bloomberg News, Business Insider, Times of Malta, CNN Opinion, Wall Street Journal Blog. Newsday, CBC Radio (Canada),  American Public Media Market Place, WGN Radio (Chicago)  Chicago Tribune, WWL Radio (Miami), CNBC Squawk on the Street, WIOD Radio (Miami) and the Associated Press have all covered Jim’s cases and his client's causes.  

Watch Jim on ABC's 20/20 program in January 2012 about the Costa Concordia disaster:
  

Watch Jim on Australia's Dateline program "Lost at Seas" in March 2012 about cruise ship disappearances: 

 Watch Jim on PBS / NOVA's "Why Ships Sink"

Watch Why Ships Sink on PBS. See more from NOVA.