Table of Contents A-Z
(CLICK SPEAKER’S NAME FOR BIO)
Wednesday Speakers
KARL C. GONZALES is President of the Greater New Orleans Barge Fleeting Association, Inc. and Vice President of Operations for Cooper-Marine, a division of the COOPER GROUP of companies. Prior, Mr. Gonzales served as clerk to the Honorable Douglas A. Allen and the Honorable James M. Lockhart, Jr., Judges of the First Parish Court for the Parish of Jefferson, Louisiana. In 1981, Mr. Gonzales was hired as Vice President and thereafter elected as President of RLB Boat Company, Inc. and Mid-Gulf Transportation Company, Inc. both of Harvey, Louisiana. From November 1985 until August 2017, Mr. Gonzales was Vice President –Operations and later became Executive Vice President of Gulf South Marine Transportation, Inc., a local marine towing company, and also held those same positions with Gulf South Marine Brokers, Inc., a local marine brokerage company. Mr. Gonzales currently serves (appointed) on several maritime related committees, including the United States Coast Guard-Lower Mississippi River Waterway Safety Advisory Committee (LMRWSAC), United States Coast Guard-Sector New Orleans- Area Maritime Security Executive Committee (AMSC), and as a member of the United States Coast Guard-Sector New Orleans Port Coordination Team (PCT). He is a former Vice President of The Mariner’s Club of the Port of New Orleans and is active in several other marine-related and charitable organizations.
ALAN J. SAVOIE, Seminar Co-Director and past president of the Greater New Orleans Barge Fleeting Association, is a consultant for the Cooper Group of Companies. He has served in many capacities in the marine industry since 1977. Mr. Savoie is formerly co-owner of Marine Centre, Inc., Kathryn Rae Towing, Inc. and LSK Towing, Inc., all local towing companies. Mr. Savoie has served in numerous GNOBFA capacities over the years.
THOMAS G. GRANTHAM is Vice President of the Greater New Orleans Barge Fleeting Association, Seminar Co-Director, and Continuing Education Coordinator. Prior to joining the marine industry in 1990, he served six years in the United States Navy Nuclear Power Program. Employed by Capital Fleet in 1990, he served as vice president of Capital Fleet until the company was acquired by Ingram Barge in 2008. Mr. Grantham is now a manager of vessel engineering for Ingram vessels in the Gulf area. He is a licensed vessel operator and holds a tankerman endorsement issued by USCG. He is a member of East Baton Rouge Local Emergency Planning Committee, American Legion and Veterans of Foreign War organizations. Mr. Grantham has served on various GNOBFA committees and in different capacities since 1999.
MAURICE C. HEBERT, JR., ESQ., Seminar Moderator Emeritus, formerly an attorney with Liskow & Lewis, APLC, retired in 2004, but maintains his license to practice law and engage in special projects, mediation, and arbitration. He graduated from LSU in 1959 with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He is a professional and registered Electrical and Environmental Engineer, (Retired) in the State of Louisiana. He graduated from Loyola University School of Law in 1966. He served as a law clerk to U.S. District Judge Richard Putnam. Mr. Hebert is admitted to numerous state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. Mr. Hebert has served on numerous marine educational boards for both industry and educational institutions. He is a member of the GNOBFA Advisory Board and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Louisiana Association of Waterways Operators and Shipyards (L.A.W.S.). He has been a speaker at numerous maritime and law related seminars, is the Co-Founder of the River and Marine Industry Seminar and has served as moderator of all of the prior River and Marine Industry Seminars.
MARC C. HEBERT, ESQ., Seminar Moderator, is a senior partner with Jones Walker and practices with the Maritime, Corporate, Litigation, and Government Relations groups. He is a member of the GNOBFA Seminar Committee, Greater New Orleans Port Safety Council Chairman 2011, 2016 to 2019 and currently serves as Chair Ex-Officio, serves on the Southern Yacht Club Junior Sailing Activities Committee, serves as Legal Counsel to the Mississippi Valley Trade & Transport Council (Board Member and Vice Chair 2006 to September 2016), and is certified/trained in Marine Incident Investigation and Root Cause Analysis (SafeMARINER, LLC). From 1995 to 2002, he worked for the U.S. House of Representatives Government Reform and Oversight Subcommittee on National Economic Growth, Natural Resources, and Regulatory Affairs and was appointed in 2019 by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross to serve on the Louisiana District Export Council. He also served as an Adjunct Professor at the Loyola University New Orleans College of Law from 2002-2005. Mr. Hebert graduated from Tulane University in 1991 with a B.A. in Economics, received his J.D. from Loyola University School of Law in New Orleans in 1994, and earned his LL.M. in Environmental Law from The National Law Center, George Washington University in Washington, D.C. in 1996. He is admitted to practice in Louisiana and Virginia, the District of Columbia, Federal Court in the Southern District of Texas, and before the U.S. Court of International Trade.
REAR ADMIRAL DAVID C. BARATA serves as Commander, Eighth Coast Guard District and is responsible for Coast Guard operations spanning 26 states, including the Gulf of Mexico coastline from the Florida panhandle to United States border with Mexico, the adjacent offshore waters and outer continental shelf, and the inland waterways of the Mississippi, Ohio, Missouri, Illinois, and Tennessee River systems.
His previous Flag assignment was as Commander of the Coast Guard Personnel Service Center, where he was responsible for executing the Coast Guard’s human resource policies. In this role, he led projects focused on recruiting, accessing, assigning, developing careers, maintaining well-being, compensating, separating, and retiring the nearly 45,000 members of the active duty and reserve military workforces.
RDML Barata’s prior field assignments included serving as Commanding Officer of Activities Europe, as well as tours at Sector Jacksonville, Marine Safety Office Providence, and Marine Safety Office Miami where he served for over 13 years in various capacities conducting marine safety, Office in Charge of Marine Inspection/Captain of the Port (OCMI/COTP), prevention, and incident response/emergency management missions. RDML Barata also served as the plank owner Executive Officer of Maritime Safety and Security Team Boston (MSST 91110) and as Deck Watch Officer aboard USCGC SENECA (WMEC 906).
RDML Barata’s staff assignments include Director, Inspections and Compliance (CG-5PC), Deputy Director, Marine Transportation Systems (CG-5PW), Chief, Office of Budget and Programs (CG-82), AC&I Coordinator and Program Reviewer (CG-821), and Senior Marine Safety/Prevention Assignment Officer at the former CG Personnel Command (CGPC OPM-2).
RDML Barata is a 1993 graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Management. RDML Barata earned a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the Naval War College in Newport, RI, in 2014 and served as a Senior Military Fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) in Washington, DC, from 2014-2015.
RDML Barata’s personal awards include the Legion of Merit (4), the Meritorious Service Medal (4), the Coast Guard Commendation Medal (2), the 9/11 Medal, the Armed Forces Service Medal, and the Coast Guard Achievement Medal. He was selected as the Navy League Southeastern MA/RI Junior Officer of the Year in 2001.
RDML Barata is a native of Jacksonville, Florida. He and his wife, Barbara have three children, James, Caroline, and Annie.
GEORGE ANDERSEN works as the Chief Broking Officer for the Marine Practice at Aon, in addition to his responsibilities in managing our National Hull and Liability Practice. George oversees some of our largest client relationships in a Strategic Account Manager/ Executive Sponsor capacity. George additionally is responsible for working alongside Patrick O’Neill in setting the overall broking strategy for our practice, including the management of our carrier relationships and ensuring that our clients have access to the most up to date material that the marine market has to offer on a quarter-by-quarter basis. George also is a member of the Marine Executive Committee in addition to representing marine on the global Transportation and Logistics Committee for Chief Broking Officers at Aon.
In George’s time at Aon, he has worked to develop our USL&H capabilities to the be the premiere in the industry in addition to developing our industry first Marine Risk Control and Risk engineering offering. These capabilities have been cornerstones in making us the number one Hull and Liability practice in the industry due to the combined focus of Data and Analytics alongside Risk Control as the primary focal points for our broking proposition and how we differentiate our clients to carriers.
George has over a decade of experience in the Marine Insurance Industry. Prior to joining Aon in 2014 as a Hull & Liability broker, George worked as a marine claims adjuster at Great American Insurance Company.
In George’s time at Aon, he has worked in a variety of sales, account executive and management roles and has been a key contributor to the reinvigoration of our overall value proposition to clients and colleagues alike.
George was elected as a Power Broker for the Marine Industry in 2018.
REAR ADMIRAL WAYNE R. ARGUIN JR. serves as the Assistant Commandant for Prevention Policy, and is responsible for the development of national policy, standards, and programs promoting Marine Safety, Security and Environmental Stewardship. Three Directorates carry out the mission: Inspections and Compliance, Marine Transportation Systems, and Commercial Regulations and Standards. Programs include waterways management, navigation and boating safety, ports and facilities, merchant mariner credentialing, vessel documentation, marine casualty investigation, commercial vessel inspections, and port state control.
Rear Admiral Arguin is a 1992 graduate of the Coast Guard Academy, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering and in 2001, he earned a Master of Science degree in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering from the University of Michigan.
Prior to his current assignment, Rear Admiral Arguin served as the Director of Inspection and Compliance, also at Coast Guard Headquarters. His previous operational assignments include Sector Commander, Sector New Orleans. He also served as Executive Officer of Marine Safety Office Memphis, TN and Prevention Department Head at Sector Lower Mississippi River where he coordinated waterways management, vessel inspections, mariner licensing and marine casualty investigations on the Lower Mississippi River and its tributaries. In 1994, Captain Arguin earned his Marine Inspection qualifications at Marine Safety Office Hampton Roads and served as senior marine inspector performing commercial vessel and cruise ship inspections at Marine Safety Office Tampa, Florida. He was also assigned to USCGC HARRIET LANE (WMEC-903) as a student engineer and Damage Control Assistant (1992- 1994).
His staff assignments include Director of Emerging Policy and Executive Officer, Hull Division Chief and Salvage Engineering Response Team (SERT) Leader at the Coast Guard’s Marine Safety Center. He was responsible for the evaluation and approval of vessel structures, stability, fire protection systems and coordinated salvage engineering support to the Coast Guard Captains of the Port (COTP) and Federal OnScene Coordinators (FOSC) in response to a variety of vessel casualties. His awards include the Defense Superior Service Medal, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Coast Legion of Merit, Coast Guard Meritorious Service Medal (five awards), the Coast Guard Commendation Medal (three awards), the DHS Secretary’s Exceptional Service Gold Medal, and the EPA Administrator’s Silver Medal.
JUDGE JEFFREY V. BROWN has served as the United States District Judge on Galveston Island since 2019. He previously served 18 years as a Texas state court judge: six years each on the Supreme Court of Texas, on the Fourteenth Court of Appeals, and as judge of the 55th District Court.
Judge Brown received a B.A. in English from the University of Texas and his law degree with high honors from the University of Houston. He then clerked on the Texas Supreme Court before practicing civil trial law at Baker Botts in Houston.
In 2006, the Texas Young Lawyers Association named Judge Brown the Outstanding Young Lawyer of Texas. The Texas Association of Civil Trial & Appellate Specialists named him Appellate Judge of the Year in 2010 and Trial Judge of the Year in 2022. He also received two judge-of-the-year awards as a state trial judge. He is co-editor of the Texas Rules of Evidence Handbook and board-certified in Civil Trial Law.
A member of the American Law Institute, ABOTA, and the Maritime Law Association, Judge Brown also serves on the boards of the Houston Law Review and UH Law Foundation, and as president of the Galveston County Bar Association. He is the federal court liaison to both the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors and the State Bar’s Litigation Council. He has taught trial skills at the University of Houston, constitutional law at the National Judicial College, and comparative law at St. Mary’s School of Law’s Institute on World Legal Problems in Innsbruck, Austria.
In 2016, Judge Brown received the Outstanding Eagle Scout Award from the National Eagle Scout Association. In 2023, the Boy Scouts’ Bay Area Council honored him with the Golden Eagle Distinguished Citizen Award.
Judge Brown and his wife, Susannah, live in a historic home on Galveston Island where they are both active Rotarians. They have three grown children—a Girl Scout Gold Award recipient and two Eagle Scouts—and one crazy dog, Chester, who loves to romp on the beach.
JOE BUSSENGER is the Sr. Director of Launch Operations at Relativity Space. With over twelve years of commercial spaceflight experience, Joe brings extensive experience in landing and reusability operations. Joe oversees the day-to-day operations at the Cape launch site which will include the evolution of pad development, vehicle processing, vehicle transportation, control room operations, landing and reusability operations, and payload integration.
Prior to joining Relativity, Joe spent ten years at SpaceX focused on offshore operations and departed as the Director of Recovery and Landing Operations, where he led Falcon 9 landing operations, dragon cargo recovery, dragon crew recovery, and fairing recovery operations. Joe was one of the first lead engineers dedicated to Falcon landing operations and sat as the primary landing controller for dozens of missions. In this role, Joe was an integral part of developing and operating SpaceX’s fleet of droneships including developing new technology and operations to address the unique environment of landing rockets at sea.
Joe holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from the Florida Institute of Technology where he continues to serve on industry/academic boards. He was the 2024 Florida Tech Jerome P. Keuper Distinguished Alumni Award recipient.
GEOFF DOUGLASS is co-founder and CEO of Mythos AI. To date he has commissioned unmanned vessel systems for multiple mission sets to customers worldwide. Geoff co-founded Mythos AI with senior developers from the Silicon Valley self-driving car industry to bridge major technical gaps in the marine domain. The company is creating digital twins of waterways and self-driving vessel technologies to scale global transportation.
HAROLD FLANAGAN is a partner at Flanagan Partners LLP. His practice includes both contracts and litigation in the areas of maritime law, oil and gas production, construction, and clean & renewable energy. He drafts and negotiates contracts for oil and gas producers, including drilling contracts, master service agreements, licensing agreements, and purchase orders. He and his team investigate casualties in the marine, oil and gas, construction, and industrial settings, and advise industrial clients on Health, Safety, and Environmental compliance. Mr. Flanagan is frequently associated by other law firms to assist in litigating the insurance aspects of large casualty claims. His team includes lawyers barred in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Colorado, and California. Mr. Flanagan graduated from Loyola University with a B.S. in Business Management in 1984, and from the Loyola School of Law in 1995, cum laude, where he was a member of the Loyola Law Review. In December 2023, he retired from Tulane Law School, where he taught the Insurance Law class for 23 years. Mr. Flanagan enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps in 1985 and retired at the rank of colonel after 26 years of service, including overseas service in Operation Enduring Freedom.
TODD FULLER is President of Associated Terminals and is a co-owner of Associated Terminals and Turn Services. The companies provide maritime services including stevedoring, logistics, terminal and port operations, towboats, mooring, fleeting and barge related services. He also serves on the board of Associated Terminals Pangaea Logistics.
Todd joined Associated in 1998 as a logistics coordinator. He then served as Logistics Manager, Vice President, and Senior Vice President at Associated Terminals. In 2011, he was named President of the Company and later became an equity partner in the Associated Terminals and Turn Services Group.
Todd graduated from Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Science in Marketing. He is a board member of the GNO Inc., Big River Coalition and The Next 25. He is a former board member of the World Trade Center of New Orleans.
C. BAXTER SOUTHERN III is the Missouri Managing Executive for McGriff, an MMA LLC company and is the co-leader of the company’s marine practice across the country. His responsibilities include new business production, program design, marketing and management of commercial insurance programs for clients. For the last 25+ years, Baxter has worked in the insurance brokerage field and is involved with a diverse group of clients including inland & coastwise vessel operators, fleets, shipyards, terminals, construction & dredging, international shippers and other commercial businesses. Over the course of his career, Baxter has touched on all aspects of risk management including claims, loss control, contracts, international insurance markets and multi-insurer coverage placements. He graduated from Vanderbilt University and secured a Master of Business Administration from Saint Louis University.
RAYMOND WAID, ESQ is a Shareholder at Liskow in New Orleans. He is a maritime lawyer and veteran-naval officer focused on helping companies in the marine and energy sector. Vessel owners, operators and others involved in the marine and energy sector rely on Ray’s advice and aggressive advocacy. They turn to him because he has the unique experience of operating a vessel at sea combined with a successful and diverse practice devoted to admiralty and maritime law, including both litigation and contracts.
Ray’s experience is vital in the high-pressure environment immediately after marine casualties, when companies need a lawyer to quickly identify the legal issues, know what questions to ask, and what actions to take in order to put companies in the best position. This same experience makes him a highly effective advocate in marine and energy cases involving personal injury, property damage, and economic loss. As a full-time maritime lawyer, he has successfully handled the gambit of cases, including collision, allision, cargo, pollution, salvage, and injury cases.
Thursday Speakers
JULIA FISHER CORMIER, a third generation St. Charles Parish native, was appointed by Governor Landry to serve as Commissioner of the Office of Multimodal Commerce in March, 2024. The Office of Multimodal Commerce was created in 2016 within LADOTD to enhance the state’s strength in multimodal transportation, encompassing ports and waterway, rail, aviation and commercial trucking programs.
Prior to her role as Commissioner, Julia served as the Chief Commercial Officer at Louisiana’s largest tonnage port, the Port of South Louisiana, whose jurisdiction spans through St. Charles, St. the Baptist and St. James Parishes along a 54 mile stretch along the Mississippi River. Julia’s successes at the Port of South Louisiana included a first-to-market, green recycling facility, the expansion and retention of several anchor tenants and supporting growth at Port of South Louisiana’s Globalplex Intermodal Facility that had not been seen in 20 years. Julia role as a results-driven go-getter significantly contributed to reversing a decade long trend of lost tonnage to back-to back years of growth at the Port of South Louisiana. Before joining Port of South Louisiana, she spent 12 years as a property and casualty insurance agent with Brown & Brown Insurance in New Orleans and Riverlands Insurance Services Inc. in Luling.
Julia comes from a family with a passion for public service. She served as Councilwoman for District VII in St. Charles Parish from 2012-2024. During her time on the Council, Julia gained insight on Public Private Partnerships, which she applied not only in her council role, but also at the Port of South Louisiana, which fostered economic growth in her region. Julia was an effective leader on the council, spanning through three administrations and serving with over 20 council colleagues. During this time, Julia served as Council Chair twice, Executive Board Member for the Police Jury Association, Vice Chair of Public Safety and Justice Committee for the National Association of County Officials, Regional Planning Commission Board Member, Chair Hurricane Protection Projects Committee, Chairman of PJAL Wildlife and Fisheries Committee, St. Charles Housing authority Ex-Officio, South Central Planning and Development Board Member, and a member of the American Association of Port Authorities.
Julia has been engaged with a number of civic organizations. Julia previously served as the President of the United Way of St. Charles for two consecutive years and Secretary Treasurer/Chair Finance Committee. She’s a member of Ducks Unlimited and CCA River Chapter.
Julia is a graduate of Hahnville High School and furthered her education at the University of New Orleans. Julia invests in continuing to sharpen her skills. In recent years, Julia has completed Certified Louisiana Economic Developer curriculum, Leadership River Region and NACo Professional Development Leadership Academy.
MIKE ELLIS has been an active investor and executive in the maritime industry for over 25 years. He most recently served as American Commercial Barge Line’s Chief Executive Officer and member of its Board of Directors from 2020-2024. While at ACBL, he led the company out of a restructuring, orchestrated an operational and financial turnaround and built a strong team-oriented culture.
Prior to joining ACBL, Mr. Ellis was Executive Vice President of Savage Services and President of their Marine Group where he helped grow and diversify their Inland and Offshore Marine businesses until Savage sold the Inland Marine Group in 2020. Prior to joining Savage, Mr. Ellis was President, Board Member and part owner of Settoon Towing Mr. Ellis played an instrumental role in building Settoon Towing’s bulk transportation division into a top tier operator before being sold to Savage. Prior to joining Settoon, Mr. Ellis held various leadership positions with Bollinger Shipyards including Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer.
Mr. Ellis is a member of the Seaman’s Church Institute Board of Trustees and a member of the Guaranty Group Board of Directors.
Mr. Ellis has a Bachelor of Science degree from Louisiana State University’s E.J. Ourso College of Business.
JUDGE KURT D. ENGELHARDT was appointed by President Donald J. Trump to the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, based in New Orleans, on May 10, 2018. He was previously appointed by President George W. Bush to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana on December 13, 2001, and became Chief Judge to that Court on October 1, 2015, serving until his appointment to the Fifth Circuit. He received a Bachelor of Arts in history in 1982 from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge and received his law degree from LSU in 1985. Prior to his appointment to the federal bench, Judge Engelhardt was a partner with the Metairie, Louisiana law firm of Hailey, McNamara, Hall, Larmann & Papale, where his practice included all aspects of commercial transactions and commercial litigation, including real estate, bankruptcy, insurance defense and coverage issues, RICO, contract disputes, and construction litigation, along with some practice in the areas of personal injury litigation and white collar criminal defense work. In 1995, Judge Engelhardt was appointed by the Governor to serve a four-year term on the nine-member Louisiana Judiciary Commission; in 1998, he was elected by his fellow commission members to serve as Chairman. His work on the Judiciary Commission has been cited for its excellence by the Louisiana Supreme Court. In 2004, Judge Engelhardt was appointed by United States Supreme Court Chief Justice Rehnquist to serve on the Judicial Conference Committee on Federal-State Jurisdiction, where he served two terms. He also served on the U.S. Fifth Circuit’s Committee on Criminal Pattern Jury Instructions, charged with drafting and updating jury instructions for use throughout the Circuit. He is a member of several professional organizations including the Advisory Board of the New Orleans Chapter of The Federalist Society; The American Judicature Society; and previously the Board of Directors (and past president) of the New Orleans Chapter of the Federal Bar Association. On October 17, 2019, he was elected to membership in The American Law Institute. He is also a Board member and past president of the Cancer Association of Greater New Orleans.
KYLE FINDLEY is recognized by colleagues and adversaries alike as one of the top trial lawyers in the country. He has an extraordinary record of verdicts and settlements that are a testament to his common-sense approach, fearless passion, honest and forthright nature, and unmatched skill in the courtroom. Kyle has been awarded over a billion dollars in jury verdicts, from juries in four different states. In 2023 alone, Kyle recovered over $1 billion in verdicts and settlements on behalf of his clients. Throughout his career, he has secured billions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for his clients—all of whom have experienced life-changing tragedies. Simply put, his track record is staggering.
WENDELL T. LANDRY is Senior Vice President – Stevedoring for Cooper Marine, Inc. in Mobile overseeing stevedoring operations in the Mobile area, Corpus Christi, Texas, and Altamira, Mexico since July 2019.
Wendell has over 34 years of experience in the maritime industry in loss control and safety, container, break-bulk, bulk, and barge fleeting operations, and experience as an expert witness in longshore industry cases. Wendell began his career on the Mississippi River working for Cooper/T. Smith in New Orleans as a Regional Director of Loss Control before being transferred to Long Beach, California overseeing the Safety & Loss Control Programs on the West Coast operations. Wendell was later transferred to Houston, Texas overseeing Safety & Loss Control before transitioning to container and break-bulk operations. In 2003, Wendell was transferred to Darrow, LA and in 2004 promoted to Vice President overseeing all stevedoring, maintenance, and fleeting operations. In 2015, Wendell became the Director of Stevedoring/Maintenance for Cooper Consolidated for Darrow, Laplace, and Belle Chasse. During the 16 years on the Mississippi River, Wendell spent time establishing and maintaining fleets, mid-stream berths, and working with landowners, engineers, GNOBFA, ACE, LAMA, and the USCG in doing so.
He attended Louisiana Tech University receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration Pre-Law with intent on attending law school after saving a little money first. After working in the retail sector, getting married, and working for Chrysler Financial, Wendell decided against law school after finding his future with Cooper/T. Smith. Wendell and wife, Tara, have one son (Spencer) who did what his father didn’t and is now a maritime attorney in Houston after graduating from Tulane Law School.
Wendell is a member of the Propeller Club of Mobile and resides in Daphne, Alabama.
W. SPENCER MURPHY joined Canal Barge Company in May 2006 and was named Vice President of Risk Management in December 2010 and General Counsel in February 2014. He manages Canal Barge Company’s legal work, claims handling, regulatory compliance, and external relations. Spencer is a past President of the Gulf Intracoastal Canal Association (GICA) and has also served on the Framework Development Team for the State of Louisiana’s Coastal Restoration Master Plan. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Waterways Council, Inc. (WCI) and is the Chairman of the Inland Waterways Users Board.
Prior to joining Canal Barge Company, Spencer was Contracts Director with Intermarine, LLC in New Orleans, where he was primarily responsible for the company’s legal and insurance affairs. He also worked in the Admiralty Law section of the Phelps Dunbar law firm in New Orleans.
Spencer graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in American History and earned his law degree from Tulane University Law School, cum laude, in 1996, with a Certificate of Specialization in Admiralty & Maritime Law.
THOMAS J. PTACEK joined Lockton in 2019 as a Senior Vice President. In his 30+ years of experience, he has gained valuable expertise in supply chain, logistics and transportation risk management in addition to extensive marine logistics and claims experience.
Tom has also established two owner-controlled insurance programs for major investor-owned utilities and has served as a contractual Risk Management advisor. His main areas of focus include supply chain risk management, transportation intermediary legal and contractual liabilities, and alternative risk transfer and captives.
Tom’s specializations have included insurance and risk management for logistics providers, especially developing techniques for insurance and risk management to serve as a business development tools for transportation companies.
He has also consulted on risk management for many large industrial, inland river and coastwise tug & barge operators.
JEFFERSON R. TILLERY, ESQ is a partner in Jones Walker’s Maritime Practice Group and co-leader of the maritime litigation, arbitration, and dispute resolution team. He is recognized as an accomplished trial lawyer and is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Drawing on his more than 35 years of experience, Jeff works closely with clients to identify the issues at the heart of any dispute and to adopt practical strategies to resolve the issues quickly and effectively. When negotiated settlements are not an option, clients rely on Jeff’s significant trial experience to present their cases before judges and juries in federal and state courts.
Known for handling complex maritime litigation, Jeff has extensive trial experience that includes representing clients in maritime personal injury and vessel collision and allision matters, commercial litigation, longshore matters, marine insurance coverage disputes, contract and charter party disputes, and property and economic damage cases involving construction and repair of fixed offshore platforms, marine terminals, docks, ships, towboats, barges, and offshore service vessels. Jeff regularly represents clients in complex marine multiparty casualty cases, including many under the Oil Pollution Act. He also represents industrial plants and refineries in matters involving explosions and other major incidents.
Jeff is a frequent speaker at seminars and on podcasts around the country. His presentations cover a wide range of maritime topics, including collisions, offshore casualties, the ramifications of recent court decisions on the industry, and the application of a host of federal and state laws and regulations, including the Jones Act and the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act.
CHRISTOPHER K. ULFERS is a partner in Jones Walker’s Maritime Practice Group and is also affiliated with the Corporate and Litigation practice groups.
Chris focuses his practice on maritime law and regularly advises and represents clients in maritime, regulatory, and commercial matters.
Chris has extensive experience in marine finance and the negotiation and drafting of a wide variety of maritime contracts, including vessel purchase and sale agreements, bareboat and time charters, master and spot towage agreements, master service agreements, barge fleeting and mooring agreements, marine-related access agreements, terminal agreements, and vessel repair and construction contracts. Chris also has experience handling a variety of commercial disputes in the maritime, energy, and other industries, including issues related to insurance coverage, indemnity disputes, construction litigation, maritime lien disputes, vessel seizures and attachments, maritime and aviation personal-injury cases, property damage cases, and vessel collisions and allisions.
In addition to his matter-specific representation, Chris is also captive counsel for the marine services division of one of the largest publicly traded midstream energy partnerships in North America, providing daily legal support for the partnership’s marine transportation business segment.
Friday Speakers
CAPTAIN GREGORY A. CALLAGHAN assumed the duties as Commander, Sector New Orleans in June 2024 where he served as Deputy Sector Commander since 2022. In this capacity, he oversees over 1,000 active duty, reserve, civilian, and auxiliary Coast Guard personnel who serve over 300 miles of the Lower Mississippi River, 230 miles of the Intracoastal Waterway, and almost 4,000 miles of coastline in an area of responsibility totaling over 100,000 square nautical miles.
His previous operational assignments include Commanding Officer of Marine Safety Unit Texas City from 2016-2018 and Executive Officer from 2014-2016. There, his responsibilities included carrying out the Coast Guard’s Homeland Security, Marine Safety, and Marine Environmental Protection missions in the Ports of Galveston, Texas City and Freeport, in over 120-miles of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, a 4,000 square-mile region of the Outer Continental Shelf, and the entrance to the nation’s largest petrochemical complex. His time there included the preparation and response to Hurricane Harvey. From 2004-2008, Captain Callaghan was assigned to Sector Boston, MA, where he served as Chief of Port State Control, Assistant Chief of Waterways Management, Aids to Navigation Officer, and Senior Investigating Officer. From 2000-2004, he served at Marine Safety Office Miami, FL as Port State Control and Domestic Marine Inspector and Licensing Examiner at Regional Exam Center Miami.
Captain Callaghan’s staff assignments include his most recent assignment as Chief of Prevention for the Eleventh Coast Guard District from 2019-2022 where he led staff, two Coast Guard Buoy Tenders, and more than 2,500 Auxiliarist in management of the prevention mission in an area of responsibility covering California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona and responsible for $500 Billion in international trade. From 2010-2014 he was assigned in the Office of Port and Facility Compliance at Coast Guard Headquarters where he served as the Coast Guard’s program manager for the Transportation Worker Identification Credential enforcement and Chief of the Port and Facility Security Standards Branch leading research, development, and implementation of top priority maritime security regulations. Additionally, he was the Coast Guard representative to the U.S. and Canada Bi-National Maritime Security Working Group.
In 2020, Captain Callaghan was appointed by the Coast Guard Deputy Commandant for Operations as Chairman of the Marine Board of Investigation to investigate the causal factors in the loss of the commercial fishing vessel SCANDIES ROSE and five crew members which occurred on December 31, 2019.
Captain Callaghan served in the Coast Guard Reserves from 1996-2000 as part of the Maritime Academy Reserve Training Program and was assigned to Activities New York.
Captain Callaghan is a graduate of the State University of New York Maritime College where he received a Bachelor of Science degree and an Unlimited Third Mates License in the Merchant Marine. He has Master’s in Public Administration and Certification in Port and Maritime Administration from Old Dominion University, and a Master’s in National Security and Resource Strategy from the National Defense University’s Eisenhower School.
CHRISTIAN KELLY has an undergraduate degree in law from Anglia Polytechnic University in England, a Master’s Degree in EU Law from the University of Essex, England and the equivalent of a US Juris. Doc. from the College of Law, Guildford, Surrey, England. Christian qualified as an qualified solicitor, admitted to the Roll of the Law Society of England & Wales in September 2002 and practiced law until 2011.
Employed as a solicitor Partner in both American and English law firms, Christian has advised both US and UK insurance companies, Lloyds of London syndicates and P&I Clubs on insurance coverage, defense and subrogation for marine insurance matters around the world but with a particular specialism within US matters. In 2012 Christian chose to go in-house with a client to head the claims function for a Lloyds of London Marine MGA, and became a Board Director with the MGA in 2013 with responsibility for claims worldwide. In 2015 the MGA was purchased by Thomas Miller and Christian became an executive Director on the Board of Thomas Miller Specialty, as well as Head of Claims for Marine, Energy, Cyber and Space risks.
In 2014 Christian moved to Mandeville, Louisiana to get closer to the US clients of the MGA, while maintaining overall control for claims worldwide for Thomas Miller Specialty. In December 2017 Christian joined Continental Underwriters / Fidelis Marine as a Senior Director of Claims progressing to being the US Head of Claims. Christian managed a US based clams team focused upon U.S. brown water marine insurance claims, cargo and inland marine/specialty.
In September 2020 Christian joined Charles Taylor TPA, a division of Charles Taylor, as VP of Claims. Christian managed adjusters across the U.S delivering predominantly marine claims services to clients (typically Jones Act employers, insurance companies and P&I Clubs).
In December 2022 Christian moved to Liberty, Texas and joined both Blu Cypress Solutions and HeloEvac as CEO. Blu Cypress Solutions is an MGA of Lloyd’s of London based in Houma Louisiana, offering a new form of insurance via the HeMEP Policy. The Helicopter Medical Evacuation Program policy covers expenses to shore of workers comp. employees on platforms and structures who suffer a non-work related medical issue requiring a flight. HeloEvac is a call center also based in Houma, that provides an independent medical doctor to deliver telemedicine and to coordinate aircraft response from three different Gulf of Mexico helicopter providers across thirteen locations in Louisiana and Texas with access to 30 aircraft.
In addition to the above Christian is a licensed all lines claims adjuster in Texas, holding reciprocal licenses across thirteen states, including Louisiana. Christian is the principal of Insurance Claims Service that offers marine and non-marine adjusting services to insurer clients as well as expert witness work on maritime insurance and coverage matters to attorneys and their clients.
Christian has previously spoken at this conference and other notable conferences and was an advisor to the Maritime and Admiralty Committee of the American Bar Association. Christian is married with five children and is a convert to ‘American’ football and is a somewhat defeated New Orleans Saints fan.
THOMAS KENT MORRISON, ESQ. is a partner with Phelps Dunbar, LLP having joined the firm in 1998 after obtaining his J.D. from Tulane University’s School of Law. He holds an AV rating, is admitted to practice in all of the courts in Louisiana and regularly represents clients in jurisdictions throughout the Gulf South. Mr. Morrison previously served on the Board of Directors for the New Orleans Chapter of the Federal Bar Association and is a member of the FBA, the Maritime Law Association and the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute. He practices in the areas of transportation, energy, maritime law, and general litigation handling cases involving commercial disputes, casualties, torts, cargo claims, collisions, personal injuries, property damage, and contractual defense and indemnity demands for maritime employers, vessel owners, longshore employers, energy companies, dock and terminal owners and their various underwriters. He also provides representation with respect to coverage issues involving a broad range of energy, marine, general liability, excess and umbrella insurance policies. He further assists marine and energy companies with their corporate structure, regulatory issues and internal and external contractual relationships.
Kent currently serves as the firm’s Regional Practice Coordinator for the marine and energy practice group.
DONALD WASHINGTON is a partner in Jones Walker’s Litigation Practice Group. An experienced litigator, leader of a federal agency, and former federal prosecutor, he focuses on business and law enforcement leadership counseling, as well as complex civil and criminal dispute resolution.
Drawing on his nearly 30 years as a trial attorney, litigator, and counselor, Don regularly represents corporations and individuals in internal investigations, government inquiries, and law-enforcement actions. He has extensive, wide-ranging experience, including litigating and investigating matters involving oil and gas issues, commercial disputes, white collar crimes, healthcare and other industry-related fraud, False Claims Act and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act compliance, environmental claims, patent infringement, Lanham Act disputes, trademark, unfair trade practices, tort, and other civil and criminal litigation. Don has recently begun serving as a mediator; drawing on his broad-based, extensive litigation background, he now offers his services in the mediation of simple to complex matters. He advocates strongly that great leadership leads to great results, and offers his experience to counsel business and law enforcement entities in handling internal and external leadership issues.
In 2019, Don was appointed Director of the United States Marshals Service, the nation’s oldest federal law enforcement agency. During his service and leadership of the agency, he developed and established key agency priorities and strategies and oversaw the operations of nearly 5,500 US marshals, deputy marshals, criminal investigators, detention enforcement officers, and administrative staff. He led the storied agency through multiple operations to address the rise in violent crime, the turbulence of civil unrest, and the COVID-19 pandemic occurring in the United States and its territories, while protecting the federal judiciary, witnesses, and courts.
Previously in his career, Don served as US Attorney for the Western District of Louisiana from 2001 to early 2010. As the chief federal law enforcement officer in the Western District of Louisiana, he led federal investigations and trial teams, as well as prosecuted cases involving criminal and civil violations of federal law. While with the US Department of Justice, he held a number of leadership positions, including on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee, the DOJ-sponsored Executive Committee for Federal Prosecutors, State Attorneys General and District Attorneys, and the DOJ’s Terrorism, Controlled Substances, and Native American Issues committees.
As an engineer, Don previously held engineering, business, and law positions while employed with Conoco, Inc., including developing and leading engineering projects, participating in the development of the company’s original diversity and inclusion practices, and serving on projects to improve the company’s contracting practices. He later served as chief counsel for the company’s Gulf of Mexico Division.
Don serves currently on the boards of Home Bank (Home Bancorp, Inc.), University of Louisiana-Lafayette Foundation, and the Louisiana Military Museum. He previously served on other notable boards, including The Innocence Project of New Orleans, Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, Community Foundation of Acadiana, Pines to the Gulf Girl Scout Council, Lafayette Airport Commission, Lafayette Education Foundation, United Way of Acadiana, and Goodwill Industries of Acadiana.
DAMON J. YOUMANS is the Special Agent in Charge (SAC) at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS), Gulf Field Office. A native of Brooklyn, New York, he began his law enforcement career with the New York City Police Department in 2003 and later joined the Durham Police Department in North Carolina, where he received the Officer of the Month award and the Purple Heart for injury’s received in the line of duty.
In 2010, he entered federal service with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Federal Air Marshal Service. He joined CGIS in 2014 as a Special Agent conducting investigations of environmental crimes, narcotics violations and other federal laws.
Promoted to Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) in 2021, he worked in the New York Field Office, collaborating with agencies like the DEA and FBI. Currently as the SAC of Gulf Field Office, he supervises special agents in the gulf region, supporting the United States Coast Guard, District 8.
SAC Youmans is a graduate of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and the FBI National Academy. He holds a bachelor’s in criminal justice and a master’s in human services counseling. He is a veteran of the U.S. Army and a current member of the U.S. Coast Guard Reserves.