Christina
M. Paul represents manufacturers and retailers in the recreational marine
industry. Christina has managed and litigated consumer warranty and product
liability litigation on behalf of the recreational marine industry. Christina also represents a publically traded
freight line company in their personal injury and property damage loss
cases. She has been admitted in various
courts across the country, as well as international venues. She also serves as counsel to the nonprofit
organization that develops safety standards for the design, construction,
equipage, repair and maintenance of recreational boats in the United States.
Her clients include the largest manufacturer of pleasure boats in the world and
most of the recreational marine engine brands.
Outside of her practice, Christina serves as the Vice-Chair of the
Boating Industry Risk Management Council, a national marine manufacturer
association committee dedicated to promoting boating safety. She is a former board member and current
contributor to the Marine Industry Cares Foundation, which is a nonprofit
charity organization designed to unite the marine industry in raising funds to
contribute to local children’s charities.
Christina is K&L Gates’ representative member of the National Marine
Manufacturer’s Association (NMMA) and the American Boat and Yacht Council
(ABYC). In 2015, Christina received the
prestigious Horizon Award from the ABYC for her proven and continued dedication
to the recreational marine industry.
Caroline Plater - Partner, Reed Smith LLP
Caroline C. Plater is a
partner in Reed Smith LLP and a member of the firm’s Complex Litigation
Group. She focuses her practice on
complex commercial litigation and product liability litigation involving
warranty, negligence, strict liability, unfair competition, trade secret, and
contract claims in single plaintiff and class action cases.
Caroline represents
manufacturers and retailers of consumer and commercial products in various
sectors, with a focus on the marine industry.
Her expertise encompasses both the commercial and product liability
aspects of a product case; starting with warranty drafting and counseling and
ending with defending the product in court.
Her experience managing entire portfolios of warranty and product liability
claims includes manufacturers of marine engines and more than fourteen separate
lines of boats.
Dave Marlow - Director of Product Integrity/Government Affairs, Brunswick Corporation
Dave Marlow has been the Director of Product
Integrity/Government Affairs for the Brunswick Corporation since 2008.
Previously, he was employed by Brunswick’s Boat Group and Sea Ray Boats in a variety
of management roles in engineering, channel management and legal.
Mr. Marlow joined Brunswick in 1986 and was employed by the
engineering department at Sea Ray Boats in Merritt Island, FL. In addition to his current duties, he is the
Chairman of ABYC’s Board of Directors, a Board member of the International
Marine Certification Institute, US delegate to the Recreational Craft Sectoral
Group for marine ISO standards in the EU, Chairman of NMMA’s Boat and Yacht
certification committee and a member of the USCG’s National Boating Safety
Advisory Council.
A native of New York, Mr. Marlow earned his bachelor’s degree from Barry
University in Business Management and an engineering minor with Brevard
Community College. He is a father of two
boys, 22 and 19, that attend the University of Tennessee. He currently lives in Knoxville, TN, is an
avid boater, weekend golfer and has been married 26 years to his wonderful
wife, Maribeth.
Marcia Kull - Vice President of Marine Sales for North America, Volvo Penta
Marcia
Kull is Volvo Penta’s Vice President of Marine Sales for North America. She currently leads the Volvo Penta sales
teams in the leisure marine and commercial marine segments throughout the
United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
Marcia
joined Volvo Penta in 2005 as Vice President and General Counsel and Special
Assistant to the CEO holding several business roles until 2011, when she
assumed her current position. Prior to Volvo Penta, she was Senior Vice
President of Operations for Genmar Holdings, Inc., a Minneapolis-based holding
company for 18 different recreational boat manufacturers. Earning her law degree from the University of
Iowa College of Law, she also spent 11 years as a partner in a Minneapolis area
trial law firm representing boat and engine manufacturers.
Marcia has
been actively involved in marine industry trade organizations. She is Chairperson of the National Marine
Manufacturer’s Engine Manufacturers Board of Directors, the first Volvo Penta
employee and the first woman to chair that committee.
Prior to
assuming the Chair of the Engine Manufacturers group, she served as its Vice
Chairperson for four years and as Chair of the NMMA Boating Industry Risk
Management Council for six years. She is
also member of the NMMA Executive Board of Directors. In 2007 she was appointed to the National
Boat Safety Advisory Council by the Secretary of the Department of Homeland
Security, and recently completed her second term. Previously, Marcia has been a
member of the ABYC Board of Directors and the ABYC Technical Board of
Directors. In 2006, Marcia was honored
by Boating Industry Magazine as the
Darlene Briggs Marine Woman of the Year. More recently, in 2016 she was honored
by the Manufacturing Institute the the STEP Award as one of the Top 100 Women
in Manufacturing.
Gavin O'Hare - Director of Corporate Business Development, CED Technologies Inc.
Mr. Gavin D. O’Hare is the Director of
Corporate Business Development for CED Technologies Inc. Mr. O’Hare holds a
Bachelors Degree from the United States Naval Academy in Engineering and
Political Science along with a Masters Degree in Business Administration from
the University of Phoenix.
Prior to joining CED, Mr. O’Hare was the
Director of Intercollegiate Sailing at the United States Naval Academy along
with being an adjunct professor in the Economics Department. Prior to the U.S.
Naval Academy, Mr. O’Hare has held positions such as Product Manager, Account
Manager and several Business Development roles.
Mr. O’Hare’s responsibilities include
Strategic Business Development and Sales Team Management.
William Daley - President and a Senior Mechanical Engineer, CED Technologies Inc.
Mr. William H. Daley, III, is the
President and a Senior Mechanical
Engineer with CED Technologies and has over 18 years of a distinguished
background in such areas as safety operations, operation of mechanical devices
and naval operations. A former US Navy
commander, Mr. Daley holds a B.S. degree from the United States Naval Academy
and a M.S. degree from the Naval Postgraduate School. He is a registered
Professional Engineer in the states of Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania.
Prior to joining CED, Mr. Daley
was the Director of Manufacturing for a custom builder of precision cleaning
and plastic bonding machinery. During his 20 years of experience in the Navy,
he was responsible for the repair and operation of shipboard weapons systems,
steam propulsion plants, electrical plants and their supporting auxiliary
equipment.
Additionally, he was a master instructor
and Associate Chairman in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the US Naval
Academy. Since joining CED in 1995, Mr. Daley has handled over 850 cases
involving machinery accidents, vehicle accident reconstructions, slip and
falls, marine investigations and others. Mr. Daley's experience and education
has lead him to be highly regarded as an expert in the areas of mechanical
systems, marine systems such as cruise line operations, machinery operation and
guarding and worker safety.
Dr. Wendy Sanders - Senior Project Engineer, Design Research Engineering, Inc.
Dr.
Wendy Sanders is a licensed Professional Engineer and consultant with extensive
experience in marine and motor vehicle accident reconstruction, design
analysis, human factors and fire origin and cause investigation. Her major
practice areas include the forensic investigation of recreational boating
accidents, vehicular and non-vehicular collisions involving people, objects,
and vehicles as well as the scientific investigation of marine, automotive,
residential and commercial fires. She holds a B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. in
Mechanical Engineering from the University of Michigan.
As
part of Design Research Engineering, an independent engineering consulting
firm, Dr. Sanders provides engineering services that focus on forensic
investigations and design analyses of automotive, marine, and a variety of
other products. These services often include litigation support and
expert witness testimony in civil litigations involving marine and automotive
accidents and alleged product failures.
Richard Basom - Business Development, Industrial Hygiene/Environmental, S-E-A Limited
Mr. Basom is responsible for the development of the Marine and
Energy Practice for S-E-A, a multi-disciplined forensic engineering and fire
investigation company specializing in failure analysis. He attained his
Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Tulane University, with additional
studies in biology. While attending Tulane university, he worked for the
Louisiana State University Medical College. He is responsible for the
investigation and management of projects involving property damage, personal
injury as well as evaluating projects involving flammability reconstruction,
indoor air quality, workplace accidents and chemical exposures. Mr. Basom
is a frequent speaker and has presented to the American Industrial Hygiene
Association, Lloyds of London, Lloyds Market Association Marine Group, The
International Association of Claims Professionals and the Risk Insurance
Managers Society. He is a member of various professional organizations
including the American Industrial Hygiene Association, Indoor Air Quality
Association, and American Chemical Society. He is also a member of the
American Boat and Yacht Council (ABYC) and a past Skipper of the Fort
Lauderdale Mariners Club. Mr. Basom has qualified as an expert and
presented his professional findings in courts of law throughout the United
States.
David Rammelt - Partner, Reed Smith LLP
David’s trial practice is focused primarily on complex business litigation, products liability litigation, and intellectual property and sports litigation. For over two decades, David has represented more than 100 public and private companies and has served as lead trial counsel in more than two dozen jury trials, TRO hearings and/or binding arbitrations. He has tried or successfully resolved cases for clients in a variety of matters involving banking and finance, toxic tort, securities fraud, breach of fiduciary duty and shareholder disputes, antitrust violations, unfair competition claims, patent and trademark disputes, distributor disputes, real estate disputes, consumer class actions, product and warranty litigation, and contract disputes. David has appeared in more than 100 state and federal courts throughout the United States.
David has been effective and aggressive in the use of Alternative Fee Arrangements (AFAs), developing models for litigation matters and lecturing on the topic at Northwestern University School of Law. He and his team serve as National Litigation Counsel for Brunswick Corporation and all of its operating businesses – including Life Fitness, Mercury Marine, and more than a dozen boat companies including Sea Ray, Lund, and Boston Whaler. In this role, David and his team have supervised and/or served as lead trial counsel in hundreds of product liability cases throughout the United States. This innovative AFA partnership with Brunswick recently was featured in the Business Section of the Chicago Tribune.
David has handled high-profile cases that have drawn considerable media attention. Cases in which he has appeared as lead trial counsel have been covered by the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times, the Wall Street Journal, and theNew York Times, among others. He has appeared on CNBC and has been quoted in dozens of newspapers and magazines, including USA Today and Crain’s Chicago Business.
