Jim Rodgers is a Partner in The New York City and Newark offices. He is the Vice-Chair of the Marine & Energy Practice Group and a member of the General Liability Practice Group, specializing in Construction related matters. His Admiralty & Maritime practice includes defense of personal injury and wrongful death actions brought under the Jones Act and the LHWCA, vessel collisions and allisions, cargo claims including claims under COGSA, claims against marine terminals and shipyards, claims involving damages to vessels while loading and unloading, petitions brought under the Limitation of Liability Act, and claims involving yachts and recreational boating. In his maritime practice, James has handled cases in state and federal court, including New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Wisconsin, Arizona, Maryland, Florida, Virginia, and California. Jim previously served six years as Associate General Counsel at the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS).Jim's Construction practice includes defense of personal injury and death claims under the New York Labor Law ("scaffold law"), large property losses resulting from steampipe explosions, fire, building collapses, scaffold collapses, crane and hoist collapses, water main breaks, gas explosions as well as the defense of governmental entities in catastrophic property damage claims resulting from the attacks on the World Trade Center on 9/11.Prior to entering the law, Jim served four years as a Surface Line Officer in the United States Navy onboard an anti-submarine warfare frigate as well as an amphibious assault ship, attaining the rank of Lieutenant and earning the Surface Warfare Qualification. His time at sea included deployments in the Atlantic, North Atlantic, North Sea, Baltic Sea, Mediterranean Sea, the Caribbean, Black Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and the Pacific, as well as transits through the Panama Canal, Kiel Canal, and the Turkish Straits.Jim has authored law articles for academic law journals at UCLA, UC Davis, and Suffolk Law School, as well as articles in shipping magazines covering maritime and international law. In the past, his pro bono work has included authoring legal briefs submitted to the Supreme Court of Ireland relating to Treaty Law and the Irish Constitution, preparing and submitting writ of certiorari to the Supreme Court of the United States, arguing appellate issues involving interpretation of college charities in the State of New York, and obtaining political asylum for ship stowaways. In addition to his J.D., Jim holds a Master of Law (LL.M) in International Business & Trade Law from Fordham University School of Law.