Founding Attorney Profile

J. Patrick Geraghty is the Founder of Geraghty Law Firm LLC. He concentrates in commercial transactions, litigation, compliance and risk management, with an emphasis on matters involving commercial transportationand maritime insurance. He is admitted to practice law in state and federal courts of New York and New Jersey. Moreover, he is a Proctor of Admiralty in the Maritime Law Association of the United States, and he is an Adjunct Professor of Admiralty Law at Rutgers University School of Law, Newark, New Jersey. In 2013, Patrick earned an M.B.A. degree at the Executive Program at NYU Stern School of Business, with concentrations in finance, strategy, leadership and entrepreneurship. He is an entrepreneur a

During the COVID pandemic, Patrick used the time to become a licensed real estate agent in bothNew York andf New Jersey.

Patrick has been an Associate at the Wall Street firms of Thacher, Proffitt & Wood and Kirlin, Campbell & Keating. He also worked in-house for the international mutual protection & indemnity club Skuld in Oslo, Norway, and founded and led the Geraghty Law Firm and Geraghty Suarez, LLP. Prior to those, Patrick was a law clerk in the Appellate Division and Law Divisions of the Superior Court of New Jersey and he obtained a Juris Doctor degree from Seton Hall University, School of Law where he was selected for the Legislative Bureau Law Journal and was named Best Oral Advocate in the appellate moot court competition. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Boston College, with a major in English. He also has a Diploma in International Maritime Law from the University of Oslo in Norway and studied at Boston University’s intern program in London, England. During college, among other things, he worked as an Ordinary Seaman on ferries traversing the Long Island Sound, and played fullback for the Boston College Rugby Team.

Patrick defends lawsuits against, among others, ship owners, marine and rail terminal operators, ferry owners, tug and tow operators, cruise lines, ship yards, port authorities, charterers, trucking companies, cargo interests, carriers, indirect carriers, surveyors, and marine underwriters. These cases involve ocean and inland marine disputes; hull, cargo, transportation, protection & indemnity and liability insurance; charter party disputes; vessel collisions and passenger vessel matters; personal injury, Jones Act, COGSA and LHWCA; personal watercraft liability; construction defect; products liability; breach of warranty and insurance coverage. Patrickalso drafted the Master Contract for a major natural gas pipeline beneath the Hudson River, and a multi-million dollar joint venture agreement between Norwegian ship builder and an American Steel producer. Patrick also has drafted and negotiated complex international commercial agreements and domestic contracts.

ATTORNEYS
We maintain a roster of experienced attorneys and we hire these attorneys on a per-project basis. These lawyers include trial specialists and transactional lawyers, and have worked with them for extended periods and know them well.

Noneof our attorneys has a billable-hour requirement.

REPORTED DECISIONS / PUBLICATIONS
Every Seafarer Has a Primary Duty That May Provide the Basis of a Defense in a Personal Injury Action,Journal of Law and Commerce; 29 J.L. & COM. 25 (Fall 2010).

The Banana Connection v. MAERSK SAN JUAN, 2006 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 30612, 2006 A.M.C. 1408 (S.D.N.Y. 2006)

Hoogland v. Transport Expressways, Inc., 24 A.D. 3d 191, 808 N.Y.S.2d 160, 2005 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 1390 (N.Y.2d Dept. 2005),reargument denied, Estate of Malkin-Hoogland v. Transport Expressways, Inc., 2006 N.Y. App. Div. LEXIS 4177 (N.Y. App. Div. 1st Dept. Apr. 4, 2006)

Mohamed Ben Mohamed Abdullah Ali Alkhulaqi v. Ocean Ships, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 9995 (S.D.N.Y. July 18 1996)