Marshall Islands / Liberia Practice

We provide Marshall Islands law and Liberia law practices and serve clients world-wide.

We provide advice and legal opinion to clients incorporated in the Marshall Islands and Liberia, as well as parties with Marshall Islands and Liberia interests, in relation to shipping and ship finance transactions and disputes involving Marshall Islands and Liberia-flagged vessels and entities. Marshall Islands and Liberia are home to two of the world’s largest ship registries by gross tonnage. In addition, over the past years increasing number of entities formed in the Marshall Islands and Liberia are used as vehicles for shipping and non-shipping activities.

Our partner, Sung-Hwan Choi is a duly qualified Marshall Islands attorney and a member of the Marshall Islands bar and advises on disputes and transactional matters of Liberia law.

Mr. Choi is regularly instructed to provide Marshall Islands and Liberia law legal opinions to major international banks and financial institutions and represent international financial institutions, funds-listed companies and vessel owners.

Recent examples of our work include:

• Advising various owners of Marshall Islands and Liberia entities in relation to insurance of relevant Marshall Islands/Liberia legal opinions for purpose of KYC satisfaction matters.
• Advising various owners of Marshall Islands entity in relation to issuance of Marshall Islands legal opinions required to re-register in Malta.
• Advising an international asset management company in relation to bid stage for acquisition of a Korean shipping company as Marshall Islands and Liberia legal counsels.
• Advising financial institution in relation to Marshall Islands laws of re-financing of six vessels beneficially owned by a Korean shipping company.
• Advising financial institution in relation to Marshall Islands laws of four drill ships under construction at Korean shipbuilder yard.
• Advising securities company in relation to Marshall Islands and Liberia laws of re-financing of fourteen vessels beneficially owned by a Korean shipping company.
• Advising financial institution UK and Singapore branches in relation to Marshall Islands and Liberia laws of financing relevant vessels for various European and Asian shipping companies.
• Advising investment and securities company and private equity firm in relation to Marshall Islands laws in relation to re-financing of fifteen vessels beneficially owned by a Korean shipping company.
• Advising governmental asset management corporation in relation to Marshall Islands and Liberia laws for re-financing of twenty-five vessels beneficially owned by various Korean shipping companies.
• Advising an Asian shipping company on Marshall Islands law for the financing and delivery of the world’s first converted floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) production vessel under a sale and lease agreement.
• Advising certain international banks in relation to financing for two new buildings at Chinese shipyard and the contract of affreightment with South American shipping company and corollary performance guarantees as Liberia legal counsel.
• Advising a group of international banks and governmental banks in respect of a senior secured loan facility made available to a certain entity incorporated and owned by the Korean government as borrower for the purpose of the borrower on-lending (together with a separate junior loan facility made available by certain Korean investment funds) to five wholly-owned SPVs by a Korean shipping company for the pre and post-delivery financing of 5 VLOC carriers as Marshall Islands/Liberia legal counsels.
• Advising an international bank in relation to the part financing of twenty-four container vessels acquired by twenty-four Liberian SPCs, wholly owned by a Singapore shipping company, representing the entire fleet purchase from a certain European seller.