Partner (Admiralty, International, Commercial, Litigation, Arbitration)

Mr. Alan Van Praag has practiced admiralty, international and domestic commercial law for 37 years, representing clients before all manner of courts and tribunals. His practice has taken him to over 100 countries. He began his career with the Office of General Counsel, U.S. Department of the Navy (1971-1974). He is admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the United States, and has argued appeals before the Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Ninth and Eleventh Circuit Courts of Appeals, and has been an arbitrator in both AAA and SMA proceedings. Mr. Van Praag’s special appointments include the U.S. Secretary of State’s Advisory Committee on Private International Law; Special Adviser in Private International Law (Admiralty) to the U.S. Delegation and Attendee to The Hague Convention Special Commission On International Jurisdiction and the Effects of Foreign Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters; U.S. Secretary of State’s Study Group on Arbitration, Amended Rules of Procedure for the Panama Inter-America Arbitration Conventions; Round Table Participant, International Conference on Proposed Hague Convention on International Jurisdiction and the Enforcement of Foreign Judgments; the Committee on Civil Rules for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York; and, the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York Joint Advisory Committee on Civil Rules. He is listed in, “Who’s Who in American Law,” and has been voted repeatedly by his peers as a New York Super Lawyer. He has been named one of the four hundred leading shipping maritime lawyers in the world by Who’s Who Legal and has been honored by being named a Titular Member of the Comite Maritime Internationale.

His articles, published twice in Brooklyn Law School Law Review, were re-printed in other Law Reviews. He has authored articles published in the ABA Litigation Journal; the International Journal of Shipping Law; Fraud Magazine; Les Nouvelles (the magazine of the licensing industry); and by the London International Law Center. He has lectured on maritime law and private international law, and presented papers at commercial and government venues including the U.S. Capitol and various international fora. Mr. Van Praag is Chairman of the Maritime Law Association of the United States (MLA) Sub-Committee serving as Liaison to the U.S. Department of State Concerning the Hague Convention for the International Enforcement of Money Judgments; Chairman, MLA Sub-Committee on Bankruptcy; Chairman, MLA Sub-Committee Liaising with the Comite Maritime Internationale; Chairman, MLA Committee relating to International Organizations, Conventions and Standards, May 1, 2008; Member, MLA Practice and Procedure Committee; and served as a Member of the Board of Directors of the MLA. He is a member of the New York County Bar Association, International Chamber of Commerce and Comite Maritime Internationale.