Joseph A. Devall, Jr.

Joey Devall is an attorney at King, Krebs & Jurgens, P.L.L.C., and practices in the areas of admiralty and maritime litigation, vessel documentation, products liability, personal injury defense, general casualty defense, and corporate transactions. His practice includes representing companies and their insurers in the marine, oil and gas, and health care industries. He also advises clients in a wide variety of contracts, including charter parties, service agreements and supply contracts, and advises business owners on corporate organization, governance, succession and ownership matters. Joey is admitted to practice in the state courts of Louisiana, the federal district courts in Louisiana and Texas, and the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Posts by Joseph A. Devall, Jr.

Working Hard or Hardly Working? The Definition of “Rest” and Towing Vessel Work-Hour Limitations

By Joseph A. Devall, Jr. on May 7th, 2013 Posted in Maritime Law

An often contentious issue in maritime litigation involving both personal injury and property damage is whether the wheelman in charge of a towing vessel that exceeds 26′ violated the so-called “twelve-hour rule.” According to 46 U.S.C. § 8104(h), “an individual licensed to operate a towing vessel may not work for more than 12 hours in a consecutive… Continue Reading

Legal Definition of a Vessel: That Certain Unnamed Gray, Two-Story Vessel Before S.C.O.T.U.S. — Part 2

By Joseph A. Devall, Jr. on December 11th, 2012 Posted in Ports & Cargo Shipping

The very question of what makes a structure a “vessel” under Section 3 of the Rules of Construction Act, 1 U.S.C. §3 is before the United States Supreme Court in City of Riviera Beach v. That Certain Unnamed Gray, Two-Story Vessel Approximately Fifty-Seven Feet in Length, 649 F. 3d 1259 (11th Cir. 2011). In Part… Continue Reading

Legal Definition of a Vessel: That Certain Unnamed Gray, Two-Story Vessel Before S.C.O.T.U.S. — Part 1

By Joseph A. Devall, Jr. on November 14th, 2012 Posted in Ports & Cargo Shipping

A feisty dachsund and its owner, Fane Lozman, have stirred up troubled waters regarding the definition of a “vessel” in City of Riviera Beach v. That Certain Unnamed Gray, Two-Story Vessel Approximately Fifty-Seven Feet in Length, 649 F. 3d 1259 (11th Cir. 2011). That case, which is now before the 2012–2013 session of the United… Continue Reading