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James A.
Kearns

Position
Special Counsel
Office
Washington, DC

Jim Kearns is special counsel in the Maritime Practice Group, where he focuses on maritime transactions.


In his more than 30 years of practice, Jim has represented owners, operators, financial institutions (as both lessors and lenders), and end users in the purchase, construction, and financing of vessels engaged in both the foreign and coastwise trades of the United States, including compliance with the requirements of the Jones Act for the ownership, chartering, and transfer of vessels. Jim regularly handles vessel construction contracts, bareboat and time charters, leveraged lease financings, vessel purchases and sales, ship mortgages, ocean carrier contracts, pooling agreements, and other maritime matters.

Jim also has experience with financings under the Title XI loan guarantee program administered by the US Maritime Administration and transactions under the statutory and regulatory provisions designed to increase the availability of financing from foreign financial institutions for vessels engaged in the US coastwise trade, including the lease financing provisions of 46 U.S.C. 12119.

Noteworthy

  • The Best Lawyers in America®, Admiralty and Maritime Law (2025 and 2026)
  • The Legal 500 United States, Transport: Shipping – Finance (listed annually since 2020)

Experience

  • Construction and leveraged lease financing of approximately 1,500 hopper barges for transportation of agricultural commodities and other dry bulk cargo on the inland waterways
  • Purchase, sale, and lease financing of switch boats used in inland waterway barge fleets
  • Construction and leveraged lease financing of tankers for crude oil and petroleum products, and LNG carriers, engaged in both the foreign and coastwise trade of the United States
  • Construction and financing of articulated tug-barge systems designed for transportation of agricultural commodities from Latin America to the United States
  • Purchase, financing, and chartering of subsea construction, field development, and maintenance vessels
  • Lease financing of offshore drilling rig service vessels
  • Purchase, sale, and lease financing of cruise ships engaged in both foreign and domestic tourist travel
  • Purchase and sale of private yachts
  • Mortgage foreclosure and arrest of a gaming vessel

Publications

  • "Update on the SHIPS for America Act," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Newsletter, June 2025
  • "SHIPS for America Act Reintroduced in Congress," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Client Alert, May 6, 2025
  • "US Coast Guard's final rule on cybersecurity: What maritime operators need to know," The Daily Journal, February 26, 2025
  • "Op-Ed: Complying with Coast Guard's Final Rule on Cybersecurity," Marine Log, February 18, 2025
  • "Coast Guard Issues Final Maritime Cybersecurity Rule: Key Requirements and Implementation Timeline," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Client Alert, January 28, 2025
  • "The SHIPS for America Act Is Launched in Congress," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Client Alert, January 6, 2025
  • "What To Expect From The SHIPS For America Act," The Waterways Journal, January 3, 2025
  • "Balancing Policy Objectives For The EPA Clean Ports Program," The Waterways Journal, October 18, 2024
  • "MarAd's Capital Construction Fund: An Opportunity For The Inland Waterways," The Waterways Journal, September 13, 2024
  • "Good News for Offshore Wind Blows in With New Guidance From the Treasury and IRS," Jones Walker LLP Tax Client Alert, April 3, 2024
  • "Op-Ed: Addressing Cyber Threats to Maritime," Marine Log, March 22, 2024
  • "EPA Launches Clean Ports Initiative with Two Competitive Grant Programs," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Client Alert, March 4, 2024
  • "Biden-⁠Harris Administration and US Coast Guard Announce Initiatives to Bolster Cybersecurity of US Ports and the Marine Transportation System," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Client Alert, February 22, 2024
  • "Capital Construction Funds: A New Opportunity For Vessel Financing On The Inland Waterways," Marine Link, September 18, 2023
  • "Bill Proposes Expansion Of CCF Program For Marine Terminal Operators," The Waterways Journal, September 16, 2023
  • "Op-Ed: Protecting Vessels Against Phishing and Malware Intrusion," Marine Log, June 29, 2023
  • "Steps to Take Now for New Maritime Infrastructure Funding Opportunities," Marine News, March 2023
  • "Onshore Funding For Offshore Wind," Marine News, January 2023
  • Jones Walker LLP Ports and Terminals Cybersecurity Survey, October 4, 2022
  • "OP-ED: Cybersecurity in the ports and maritime terminals sector," MarineLog, October 4, 2022
  • "Offshore wind funding opportunities for Gulf of Mexico ports," New Orleans CityBusiness, August 18, 2022
  • "OP-ED: Cybersecurity training is key to cybersecurity resiliency," Marine Log, July 19, 2022
  • "Suggestions For Making America's Marine Highway Program," MarineLink, May 2022
  • "Financing Options for Coastwise Trade-Qualified Vessels for Use in US Offshore Wind Projects," Texas Lawyer, March 22, 2022
  • "Infrastructure Funding Opportunities for Small Ports," MarineLink, March 3, 2022
  • "Financing Options for Coastwise Trade-Qualified Vessels for Use in US Offshore Wind Projects," Jones Walker LLP Offshore Wind Client Alert, October 28, 2021
  • "Infrastructure Update: An Earmark By Any Other Name," MarineLink, August 2021
  • "Recent Improvements to the Port Infrastructure Development Program for Small Ports," Waterways Journal, April 21, 2021
  • "Congress Provides Last-Minute Help For Small Inland And Coastal Ports," MarineLink, March 2021
  • "Secretary of Defense Issues "Zero-Based Review" of all Department of Defense Advisory Committees," Jones Walker LLP Maritime Newsletter, February 2021
  • "The Unsung Benefits Of The Inland Waterways," MarineLink, May 2020
  • "The National Freight Strategic Plan And The Inland Waterways," MarineLink, March 2020
  • "INLAND FINANCE: But I Don’t Need That Much," MarineLink, May 2019
  • "But I Don't Need That Much: When Enough to Meet the Need is Not Enough to Get the Help," MarineNews, May 2019
  • "The American Society of Civil Engineers: Not Just a Tough Grader," MarineNews, September 2017
  • "Rethinking Inland Infrastructure Finance," MarineNews, September 2016
  • "When Foreign Doesn't Mean Foreign: The Jones Act Lease Financing Exception," MarineNews, May 2016
  • "A New Toolkit for Planning Port Investment," MarineNews, November 2015
  • "Barging Ahead in Uncharted Waters," MarineNews, June 2015
  • "The Quest to Fund Inland Waterways," MarineNews, February 2015

Presentations

  • "Present and Proposed Incentives for Investing in Domestic Marine Transportation and Shipbuilding," Inland Marine Expo, Nashville, Tennessee, May 30, 2025
  • Inland Marine Insight Podcast, May 29, 2025
  • "Recent Developments in Title XI & Capital Construction Fund Programs," Marine Log TTB Conference, Mobile, Alabama, March 26, 2025
  • "Capital Construction Fund Update," 2024 St. Louis Inland River Seminar, St. Louis, Missouri, September 17, 2024
  • "Capital Construction Fund," St. Louis Inland River Seminar, St. Louis, Missouri, September 16–17, 2024
  • "Expansion of the Capital Construction Fund Program," 2024 Inland Marine Expo, Nashville, Tennessee, May 30–31, 2024
  • Data Connectors St. Louis Cybersecurity Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, April 25, 2024
  • "Dock Talk Episode 3," Inland Rivers, Ports, and Terminals (IRPT) Podcast Dock Talk, March 19, 2024
  • "Current Trends in the Jones Act / Inland Marine / Marine Construction Markets," 2024 ELSA Equipment Management Conference & Exhibition, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 12, 2024
  • Inland Rivers, Ports & Terminals Annual Conference, Louisville, Kentucky, September 19–21, 2023
  • "The State of Cybersecurity at the Water's Edge," Data Connectors 2023 St. Louis Cybersecurity Conference, St. Louis, Missouri, September 14, 2023
  • "Jones Walker gives inland waterway infrastructure update," Marine Log's Listen Up! Podcast, March 2, 2023
  • "Credit Rating Private Debt Deals," Marine Money 2022 New York Ship Finance Forum, November 17, 2022
  • Port Infrastructure Development Program of the US Department of Transportation, Inland Rivers, Ports & Terminals Annual Conference, Tulsa, Oklahoma, October 5, 2022
  • Inland Rivers, Ports and Terminals Annual Conference, Biloxi, Mississippi, October 19 & 20, 2021

Memberships

  • American Public Philosophy Institute, Board of Directors, Member
  • Inland Rivers, Ports & Terminals, Inc., Board of Directors; Member and Secretary-Treasurer
  • Maritime Law Association, Marine Financing Committee; Inland Waters and Towing Committee; Stevedores, Marine Terminals, and Vessel Services Committee
Washington, DC
Suite 600
1 M Street SE
Washington, DC 20003
D: 202.203.1095
F: 202.203.0000
Emailjkearns@joneswalker.com

Education

  • New York University
    LLM, Taxation, 1993
  • University of Notre Dame
    JD, cum laude, 1974
  • University of Notre Dame
    BSEE, summa cum laude, 1971

Bar Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • Missouri
  • New York

Court Admissions

  • US Patent and Trademark Office

Related Practices

  • Maritime Finance and Transactions
  • Maritime
  • Maritime Restructuring

Related Industries

  • Maritime Industry
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