Seminar Agenda
The seminar information below is preliminary and subject to change. Check back for updates as we get closer to the event date.
| Monday, October 26, 2026 | |
| 1400 – 2100 | Registration & Badge Pickup
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| 1800 – 2100 | Meet The Speakers Reception
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| Tuesday, October 27, 2026 | |
| 0700 – 0800 |
Continental Breakfast
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| 0700 – 1700 | Registration & Badge Pickup
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| 0800 – 0820 | Welcome and Opening Remarks
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| 0820 - 0915 |
“There won't be any money, but when you die, on your deathbed, you will receive total consciousness. So I got that goin' for me, which is nice." |
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Crew Welfare / Wellness: The standard of care for crew has been raised to a level that embraces many aspects of crew health and welfare that were of little concern not so long ago. The Maritime Labor Convention sets a minimum standard on internationally trading commercial vessels but how high should the standard really be for all vessels including workboats and crewed yachts? Do insurers and maritime attorneys understand these changes in the industry? Are they being proactive to the problem or simply reactive? How good is the crew welfare topic being handled on your clients’ vessels? |
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Speakers: Katherine Kaplan - Wilson Elser Moskowitz Edelman & Dicker LLP; Jeromy Mold - Global Yacht Solutions; Arianna Clark - Bradford Marine; Debora Radtke - American Yacht Agents |
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| 0915 - 1010 |
“Who's the gopher's ally? His friends. The harmless squirrel and the friendly rabbit” |
| Bridging the Gap between Surveyors, Investigators and the Adjuster: Marine losses often require close coordination between claims professionals, investigators, surveyors, and occasionally law enforcement. Misunderstandings about these roles, expectations, and timelines can create friction or delay. Terms like routine investigation, evidence preservation, suspicious activity, confidentiality, best practices and “expectations” will be discussed by the panelists. | |
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Speakers: Kerry McCook - GEICO; Charlie Hazouri - Marine Surveyor; John Walker - Sedgwick; Jason Harris - Farrell Smith O’Connell Aarsheim Aprans LLP |
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| 1010 - 1030 | Morning Break |
| 1030 - 1100 | “We have a pool and a pond... Pond'd be good for you” |
| The Shrinking Waterfront: You might build a condo where there was once a boat yard, but you will never see a developer tear down a condo to build a boat yard. Marina conglomerates are triggering the loss of the Mom & Pop yard. The smaller boat repair facilities are fading into the sunset, but turning small facilities into mega-yards does save the commercial waterfront from condo developers. There is a price to pay that is passed on to the vessel owners, losing the personal relationship, having less choices and the service agreement looks more like a car rental invoice with added fees that try to take the last bit of fun out of boat ownership. | |
| Speaker: Bert Fowles - SUNTEX | |
| 1100 - 1155 |
“I've sentenced boys younger than you to the gas chamber. Didn't wanna do it, but felt I owed it to them.” |
| E&O related Issues: Know Your Client (KYC) / Know Your Policy (KYP). Does (did) the policy reflect the clients’ expectations and did the underwriter produce a policy that covers the requested risk(s). This topic will include coverage, exclusions and navigation limits. Then what happens in the court when there is no coverage and the insured looks to blame the broker or agent who procured the policy. | |
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Speakers: Neil Lerner Cox - Wooten Lerner Griffon & Hansen LLP; Nicola Kingman - SKULD; Allison Jolls AXA XL / Ocean Marine |
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| 1200 - 1330 | Lunch Buffet |
| 1330 - 1430 | “Hey, Smails! My dinghy’s bigger than your whole boat!” |
| Beneficial Ownership and Limitation of Liability: This old and new subject continues to advance to the forefront in light of recent changes to the Limitation Act. For decades the concepts of corporate ownership, bareboat charters and third-party management have insulated the beneficial owner from problems associated with personal injuries, damage to other property, pollution claims and possible high value awards. But is there any advantage anymore? | |
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Speakers: George Chalos -CHALOS & Co, P.C.; Rowen Asprodites -Pusateri, Johnston, Guillot & Greenbaum, LLC |
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| 1430 - 1530 | “Remember Danny – Two wrongs don’t make a right, but three rights make a left” |
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The success or failure of the environmental regulations: Is the war on the environment winning or losing? Maybe climate change is the real culprit? Insurers have learned to amend policies and make the insured more cognizant of coverages for pollution and other environmental claims. The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 remains at the forefront 25 years later but this has not deterred or stopped the small abuses that slowly and continually erode away at our environment. Has the criminalization of seafarers made an impact or simply caused the offenders to find better ways to cheat against the rules. What types of claims do we see today and are the authorities being successful in prosecution of the offenders? |
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Speakers: Ryon L. Little -De Leo, Kuylenstierna & Little, P.A.; Tom Mullady Ascot |
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| 1530 - 1600 | Afternoon Break |
| 1600 – 1700 | “Spalding get your foot off the boat!” |
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Case Study of a Double fatality: A contemporary boat with a large number of guests were enjoying a day on the water that included music, swimming and adult beverages. Late in the afternoon the boat owner left both engines running while anchored and was in the water with guests. Someone reportedly engaged the throttles causing the boat to back over the owner and a passenger, killing both. The claims were filed in multiple directions including design issues, other contributing causes and speculation that the engines may have been placed into gear deliberately, not accidentally. What really happened? |
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Speakers: Stephen Knox - Knox Marine Consultants; Andy Landry, III - Gray Reed |
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| 1700 -1715 |
Closing Remarks & Vacation Raffle
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| 1715 - 2000 | Post Seminar Cocktail Reception on the Westin Pool Deck |
