Alfred J. Kuffler
Senior Counsel
Alfred J. Kuffler has more than 40 years of admiralty, insurance coverage and defense, commercial contract, maritime products liability and construction law experience, representing national and international clients in the marine, insurance, transportation, energy, commodity trading and heavy manufacturing industries.
His maritime and admiralty practice concentrates on hull, cargo, pollution, salvage, charter, maritime contract matters, personal injury and general maritime lien issues, together with marine and energy insurance and reinsurance cases. Experience in the charter arena includes representation of both owners and charterers. Representation in maritime pollution incidents began with the original Clean Water Act in the early 1970s and continues to the present.
Fred's insurance practice has included coverage disputes, defense and prosecution of subrogation claims. Coverage issues have involved both direct and reinsurance matters in the marine and non-marine contexts.
Commercial cases have included disputes over leases for land and ships, the purchase and sale of commodities, and financing instruments such as letters of credit, used in international trade.
Fred also coordinated a nationwide project for the submission of amicus curiae, or friend of the court, briefs on issues of interest to his clients arising out of environmental coverage cases.
In addition to his broad trial experience, Fred has considerable experience with alternative dispute resolution procedures. He has represented parties to arbitral proceedings and private mediations, and has sat both as an arbitrator and mediator. He has represented a claimant with a major claim at the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal.
Fred's practice also has a transactional side, which involves negotiating and providing advice to clients on issues related to contracts falling within the areas of substantive practice, risk management matters, and environmental concerns within the marine industry. He has drafted insurance and reinsurance policy contracts. He also has negotiated and drafted contracts for a major project involving the importation of liquified natural gas, as well as terminalling agreements.
Between 1979 and 1999, Fred was a managing partner at Palmer Biezup & Henderson in Philadelphia. Prior to Palmer Biezup, Fred was an associate (1967-1976) and later a partner (1976-1979) with Rawle & Henderson in Philadelphia.
Fred graduated from Cornell University (LL.B., 1967) and from Princeton University (A.B., cum laude, 1964).
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Energy and Environmental
Montgomery McCracken’s Energy and Environmental Industry Group has over 50 years of experience in the field of environmental law, including various areas within the energy discipline. Brownfields The firm has […]
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1 of 4 Credentials
Selected Representations - Lead counsel to the owners and insurers of the Athos I Delaware River oil spill, November 2004, the most expensive spill in the United States since the EXXON VALDEZ
- Lead trial counsel for United States based shipowner against government of Iran in proceeding at Iran-United States Claims Tribunal – The Hague, Netherlands – resulting in $30,000,000 recovery. At the time, it was the fifth largest recovery of any contested claim at the Tribunal
- Lead trial counsel in successful ship owner’s defense of $45,000,000 claim for the destruction of a nuclear power plant transmission line crossing the Delaware River; trial saved client $25,000,000
- Negotiated $7,500,000 recovery from an oil company’s insurers for loss of cargo in a ship fire and a $4,000,000 subrogated recovery from ship owner’s insurers. The timing of the latter recovery also saved the oil company client $1,000,000 in future insurance premiums
- Lead trial counsel in insurance coverage litigation which went to the Supreme Court of Georgia. The result of the litigation clarified insurer’s defense obligations under a general liability policy in Georgia and saved the client $500,000 in settlement
- Counsel to ship owner responsible for a spill 120 percent as big as the spill from the EXXON VALDEZ in the first ever Spill of National Significance Exercise held under the National Contingency Plan
- Assisting a major marine insurer in preparation of its internal disaster response plan
- Coordinating a nationwide friend of the court briefing project on recurring questions of insurance coverage for environmental liabilities under general liability policies
- Prevailing counsel in appeal upholding court’s exercise of admiralty jurisdiction involving first ever arrest of negotiable ocean bill of lading for purpose of establishing ownership of bill, and, hence, cargo, as against attempted fraudulent conversion of bill
- First lawyer based outside of New York to regularly represent clients before Society of Maritime Arbitrators panels
- Counsel to Underwriters in the September 1990 sinking of the Tank Barge SARAH FRANK, one of the first cases under OPA-90, which became effective August 18, 1990
- Developed coverage analysis matrix for a marine and energy insurer’s claims department faced with 1,500 onshore pollution, asbestos, and health hazard insurance and reinsurance claims. The matrix provided a prompt, uniform preliminary coverage analysis enabling the insurer to respond in a timely way with its coverage position and highlighted those cases which will pose long term issues for a client
- Drafted multi line, multiyear excess reinsurance casualty and property policy covering captive direct insurer of a Fortune 500 transportation conglomerate – ship, rail, truck, barge and intermodal
Selected Speaking Engagements - Panelist, “OPA 90 Successes, Challenges and Views of the Future,” Connecticut Maritime Association Shipping Conference, March 2024
- Speaker, “Crisis Response,” Connecticut Maritime Association Shipping Conference, April 2019
- Speaker, “Place of Refuge: Still A Big Problem,” Connecticut Maritime Association, March 2016
- Presenter, “Place of Refuge – Unfinished Business,” American Salvage Association/Marine Log, 2015
- Presenter, “Port of Refuge: A Continuing Problem for the Industry,” Connecticut Maritime Association’s Shipping 2014, March 2014
- Speaker, “International Law Seminar 2013: Recent Developments in Maritime Law: A Multijurisdictional Perspective”, September 2013
Selected Publications - Author, “The Polluter Pays,” OPA 90 Forum Newsletter, March 2025
- Quoted, “How One of the World’s Biggest Ships Jammed the Suez Canal,” The New York Times, July 2021
- Author, “Responder Immunity: Protecting the Salvor in “Bet the Company” Responses,” Maritime Reporter and Engineering News, June 2020
- Co-Author, “Maritime Bankruptcies in the US during the Coronavirus Pandemic: An Introduction for Creditors,” May 2020
- Co-Author, “Dismantlecon: BIMCO’s Form Offshore Decommissioning Contract,” Soundings, Spring 2020
- Mentioned, “Law360’s Weekly Verdict: Legal Lions & Lambs,” Law360, April 2020
- Co-Author, “$73M Judgment in Maritime Case Upheld by SCOTUS,” March 2020
- Mentioned, “Justices Won’t Let Citgo Off Hook for $133M Oil Spill,” Law360, March 2020
- Author, “No Blood From a Stone!” Soundings, December 2018
- Mentioned, “3rd Circ. Won’t Revisit Citgo’s $100M Oil Spill Liability,” Law360, May 2018
- Quoted, “Cargo ship’s months-long stay is about to end,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, November 2014
- Author, “Place of Refuge – Ongoing Challenge,” Soundings, Summer 2014
- Mentioned, “Filipino crewmen stranded on ship ask for ‘humanitarian parole’,” Inquirer.net, August 2014
- Quoted, “In limbo on the Delaware,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, July 2014
- Quoted, “Sanity and sanctuary needed on refuge response,” Tanker Shipping & Trade, June 2014
- Author, “Exxon Valdez Legacy,” Sea Venture, December 2012
- Co-Author, “Charterers’ Potential Liability for Oil Pollution in the United States,” The Charterer, October 2012
- Co-Author, “The Deepwater Horizon Sets OPA-90 Precedents,” Currents, June 2012
- Author, “Built It, But Will They Come? – Port Development as a Harbinger of Growth in Shipping and the Gamble Ports are Making,” Marine Money, January 2012
- Quoted, “BP Clean-Up Costs to Soar, Experts Say,” Financial Times, April 2011
- Quoted, “BP, Drilling Partners Sued by U.S. Government Over Gulf Oil Spill Damage,” Bloomberg, December 2010
- Co-Author, “The Authority of the Arbitrators to Interpret the Rules Under Which the Arbitration is Conducted,” The Arbitrator, April 2010
- Author, “Nobody Should Be Happy: A Cautionary Tale for Judicial Sales in the United States,” Marine Money International, 2010
Honors & Awards - Selected to the Best Lawyers in America© – Admiralty and Maritime Law list in 2007-2025. This list is issued by Best Lawyers and a description of the selection methodology can be found here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey or the highest court of any other state.
- Selected to the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers – Transportation/Maritime Law list in 2006, 2009-2010, and 2015. This list is issued by Thomson Reuters and a description of the selection methodology can be found here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey or the highest court of any other state.
- Martindale-Hubbell “AV” Rated and awarded Top Rated Lawyer in Transportation Law in 2013. The “AV” rating is issued by Martindale-Hubbell and a description of the selection methodology can be found here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey or the highest court of any other state.
- Selected as one of “New York Area’s Top Rated Lawyers” in 2012 and 2014. This award is issued by ALM and a description of the selection methodology can be found here. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey or the highest court of any other state.
Professional Activities - Mediator and Participant, Mediation Skills Seminar and Settlement Conference Advocacy, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- Judge Pro Tem, Philadelphia Common Pleas Court’s Commerce Court System
- Former Arbitrator and Former Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee on Maritime Arbitration and Member, Maritime Law Association
- Member, American and Philadelphia Bar Association
- Resident Associate Member, Association of Average Adjusters
- Member, American Salvage Association
