Best Lawyers Near You in Miami, Florida for Admiralty and Maritime Law
Miami Maritime Lawyer Selection
Lawyers recognized in admiralty and maritime law in Miami in The Best Lawyers in America® and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America are listed below. These attorneys are selected through a rigorous peer-review process conducted by Best Lawyers. Each year, maritime attorneys from around the world are nominated by their professional peers and evaluated based on their legal ability, integrity and professional success within the maritime field. Only those who receive consistently high evaluations from other leading lawyers are included in the final list, reflecting the respect and trust these Best Lawyers candidates have earned within Florida’s maritime legal community.
Miami Admiralty & Maritime Practice Overview
In the South Florida region, spanning from the Port of Miami through the Florida Straits and into the Caribbean, admiralty and maritime legal work covers everything tied to marine operations. This includes litigation, commercial transactions, non-litigation counselling and regulatory representation before both Florida state and U.S. federal bodies. Here's a breakdown of the various admiralty and maritime practice areas. Some lawyers specialize in one or two of these areas, while others offer legal services for all maritime law cases in and around Miami.
Litigation & Dispute Resolution
Law firms in this field typically handle:
- Collisions and allisions involving inland and oceangoing vessels within the PortMiami, Port Everglades and coastal waterways.
- Personal injury and crew-claims (e.g., under the Jones Act) aboard passenger vessels, yachts, drill rigs and commercial craft.
- Cargo damage, loss or delay linked to international shipments from South Florida’s ports.
- Disputes over maritime insurance coverage, workers’ compensation for seafarers and commercial vessel operations.
- Complex incidents such as mass-disaster marine casualties, major pollution events, toxic-tort exposures and class-action maritime litigation.
Given the unpredictability of maritime events — often at sea, offshore, or in remote locations — lawyers in this practice are frequently on-call 24 hours, ready to mobilize for urgent response and investigation.
Commercial & Advisory Services
In the transactional and counselling sphere, services include:
- Yacht and commercial vessel sales and acquisitions, including registration, title and lien matters.
- Shipyard and repair-contract drafting and negotiation for South Florida repair yards.
- Charter-party agreements, vessel financing, marine insurance risk evaluation and brokerage advice.
- Counsel on international maritime contracts, offshore operations and vessel liens/enforcement mechanisms.
Regulatory Representation
Maritime counsel in Miami regularly appear before:
- The United States Coast Guard (USCG) Southeast — (formerly District Seven), covering South Florida.
- The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) for shipping-line, port and terminal regulation.
- The United States Department of Labor (DOL) — for seafarer wage, working-condition and injury-claims issues.
- The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) — particularly when marine casualties are part of a larger transportation-safety investigation.
Because Miami is a key hub for cruise ships, cargo vessels, offshore energy rigs and international shipping, attorneys experienced in this practice offer both deep local knowledge and worldwide reach.
Practice Area Overview
The admiralty and maritime practice involves all aspects of legal work relating to marine activities. This includes litigation, commercial transactions, and non-litigation counseling, as well as regulatory work before federal and state agencies. Firms with litigation caseloads generally represent clients in matters involving collision, personal injury, cargo loss, workers' compensation, maritime commercial disputes and insurance coverage relating to inland marine vessels, oceangoing vessels, passenger vessels, drill rigs, and other offshore equipment.
Frequently, these firms also handle marine related issues involving mass disasters, major pollution incidents, toxic torts, and class actions. Due to the nature of when and where clients' needs arise, attorneys in this practice frequently are on call 24 hours and travel to distant and sometimes remote locations. In the areas of commercial and counseling, maritime attorneys handle issues relating to vessel sales, shipyard contracts, maritime insurance counseling and evaluation, contract and charter drafting and negotiations, and maritime finance advice. In the context of the regulatory arena, attorneys typically appear before the United States Coast Guard, Federal Maritime Commission, United States Department of Labor, and the National Transportation Safety Board.
Charles R. Lipcon graduated with his J.D. from the University of Miami in 1971. Since then, he has built a reputation representing victims of cruise line sexual assaults, wrongful death claims, and personal injury matters. Mr. Lipcon has written multiple books, including his latest, “Unsafe on the High Seas," and has earned a Martindale-Hubbell rating of AV due to his extensive experience and professional standards. Charles Lipcon is also involved in numerous associations outside of the...
Jacqueline Garcell is a senior partner and active trial attorney in maritime law for Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A. She routinely handles passengers’ personal injury, sexual assault and wrongful death claims, as well as non-maritime personal injury claims. Ms. Garcell is the fastest attorney to ever make partner at the firm, having been promoted to the partner position after being with us for a decade. Ms. Garcell has helped settle hundreds of cases on behalf of both cruise shi...
John H. Hickey is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Admiralty and Maritime Law, Medical Malpractice Law - Plaintiffs and Personal Injury Litigation - Plaintiffs. John H., who practices law in Miami, Florida, has been recognized since 2019. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which John H. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Glenn J. Holzberg is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Admiralty and Maritime Law. Glenn J., who practices law in Miami, Florida, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Glenn J. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.
Jason R. Margulies is a board certified admiralty and maritime lawyer representing victims of cruise ship sexual assault and other similar cruise injuries. Mr. Margulies has received multiple awards throughout his years of practice including an AV Preeminent 5.0 out of 5 rating from Martindale, 10.0 Avvo score along with numerous positive reviews from clients. Jason Margulies is frequently interviewed by the media and quoted on cases relating to cruise safety and maritime legal issues. He is ...
Carol L. Finklehoffe is a partner at Lipcon, Margulies and Winkleman, P.A. who has been practicing for 30 years in both the state and federal courts throughout Florida, California and Massachusetts. Ms. Finklehoffe is an “AV” rated trial attorney who is a certified specialist in Maritime and Admiralty law. The main concentration of her practice relates to complex personal injury, resort law, wrongful death, sexual assault and medical malpractice. Ms. Finklehoffe is also a skilled ...
"Helping people regain their lives after catastrophic injury or wrongful death of a family member is not work. It is a noble and rewarding challenge to right a wrong and brings with it great personal satisfaction." Having graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Engineering from Massachusetts Maritime Academy, acquired three U.S. Coast Guard licenses and worked on offshore drilling platforms for more than seven years, Keith Brais brings an uncommon degree of real world experience...
Michael A. Winkleman is an active trial and appellate attorney at Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A. Mr. Winkleman has been featured on dozens of national television segments due to his expertise in maritime and cruise ship law related matters. This includes appearances on the Today Show, 20/20, Inside Edition, Fox News and many more. Mr. Winkleman has also won several awards including ‘Top 20 under 40 Professional’ by Brickell Magazine, “Superlawyer” for numerous...
Henry Salas is a partner in the firm’s Miami and Key West offices. He practices in all phases of civil litigation focusing on Federal and State Civil Litigation focusing on the defense of products liability, marine/admiralty, aviation and transportation, pharmaceutical and medical device litigation, Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (“LHWCA”), bad faith/extra-contractual liability, toxic tort and commercial litigation. Mr. Salas leads the firm’s admi...
Luis Llamas is a partner in the Maritime Practice Group. He concentrates his practice on complex commercial litigation, admiralty disputes, trade secret and non-compete disputes, and international law. Luis co-leads the firm's Latin America working group and is the head of the firm’s Miami office. Luis is a highly respected litigator. Luis has handled cases across the United States involving marine casualties, trade secret and non-compete agreements, breach of contract, unfair trade pra...
Richard D. Rusak is a partner in the Miami office of Cole, Scott & Kissane, P.A and Board Certified in Marine/Admiralty Law by the Florida Bar Board of Legal Education and Specialization since 2010. He is an accomplished trial lawyer with two decades of litigation and appellate experience in federal and state courts and primarily represents major insurance companies, ship owners and marinas in marine/admiralty defense cases. Mr. Rusak also practices in the areas of hospitality defense, tr...
Our Methodology
Recognition by Best Lawyers is based entirely on peer review. Our methodology is designed to capture, as accurately as possible, the consensus opinion of leading lawyers about the professional abilities of their colleagues within the same geographical area and legal practice area.
The Process
Best Lawyers employs a sophisticated, conscientious, rational, and transparent survey process designed to elicit meaningful and substantive evaluations of the quality of legal services. Our belief has always been that the quality of a peer review survey is directly related to the quality of the voters.