M. Hamilton Whitman, Jr.

Bar Admissions

• Maryland

Court Admissions

• Court of Appeals of Maryland
• United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
• United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
• United States District Court for the District of Maryland
• United States Supreme Court

Education

• University of Virginia School of Law (J.D., 1976)
• Princeton University (A.B., with honors, 1969)

M. Hamilton Whitman, Jr.

Experience

M. Hamilton "Tony" Whitman, Jr. is a principal with Ober|Kaler and chairs the firm’s Disputes Resolution Section. Tony provides business advice and dispute resolution services in admiralty and maritime matters, construction law and civil litigation. He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.

Tony represents admiralty clients in casualty matters such as collisions, allisions, groundings, capsizings, mechanical breakdowns and pollution incidents, as well as in commercial matters such as shipbuilding and repair, vessel financings, charter party disputes, maritime lien claims and ship mortgage foreclosures. Tony handles personal injury and cargo damage cases and is experienced in maritime insurance coverage disputes. Early in his career, he was seconded by the firm to the London office of the managers of a major P and I Club, where he worked in claims handling and dealt with club members and correspondents worldwide.

In construction law, Tony handles a broad scope of matters that include contract negotiation, counseling and drafting, litigation, arbitration and alternative dispute resolution efforts. His areas of experience include power generation and cogeneration facilities; power transmission and distribution facilities; hospitals and related health-care facilities; industrial and commercial buildings; hotels and related hospitality facilities; shipbuilding and repair; marine terminal facilities; dredging projects; and land-based and submarine telecommunications projects.

Tony’s general civil litigation practice encompasses business litigation and creditors’ rights matters as well as insurance defense and coverage cases. He represents banks and other financial institutions on creditors' rights and lender liability issues and is experienced in the enforcement of loan and lease documents, collection on troubled loans and defense of borrowers' counterclaims. Tony has experience in multidistrict litigation and in overseeing matters pending in foreign countries.

His experience also includes arbitrations under the rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA), the International Chamber of Commerce, JAMS/Endispute, the Society of Maritime Arbitrators (SMA) and the Maritime Arbitration Association (MAA) of the United States. He has successfully represented clients in other alternative dispute resolution forums, such as mediation and mini-trials, and he has served as a mediator and as an arbitrator in cases under the AAA, SMA and MAA rules. He is a member of the MAA’s National Advisory Board.

Professional Memberships

• American Bar Association
  • Forum on the Construction Industry
  • Section on Litigation
• American College of Trial Lawyers
  • Fellow
• Bar Association of Baltimore City
• Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference
  • Permanent Member
• Maritime Arbitration Association of the United States
  • National Advisory Board
• Maritime Law Association of the United States
  • Past Member of Board of Directors
  • Committee on Regulation of Vessel Operations
  • Committee on Practice and Procedure
• Maryland State Bar Association
  • Section on Litigation
• Wednesday Law Club

Community Service

• Historic Ships in Baltimore
  • Advisory Board Vice Chair
• Living Classrooms Foundation
  • Board of Directors
• Propeller Club of the United States, Port of Baltimore
  • Past Treasurer
• Roland Park Community Foundation
  • Past Board Member
• St. David's Episcopal Church in Roland Park
  • Past Vestry Member

Honoraries

• Listed in The International Who’s Who of Shipping & Maritime Lawyers, 2009
• Listed in Expert Guides to the Leading Lawyers – Best of the Best USA, Shipping Category, 2007 and 2011
• Listed in Maryland Super Lawyers, Transportation/Maritime, 2007-2010; General Litigation, 2007-2008, 2011-2013; and Construction Litigation, 2010
• Named as one of Maryland’s Top 50 Super Lawyers in 2008 & 2010
• Listed since 1989 in The Best Lawyers in America for Admiralty & Maritime Law, Arbitration, Construction Law, International Arbitration - Commercial, International Arbitration - Governmental, and Mediation Categories (Woodward/White, Inc.)
• AV Rated, Martindale-Hubbell

Professional Background

• Former Chair, Ober|Kaler Admiralty and Maritime Group
• Lieutenant, U.S.N.R., Qualified in Submarines