Get to know Blank Rome Maritime team members Douglas J. Shoemaker and G. Evan Spencer.
Douglas J. Shoemaker
How did you get into maritime law?
I grew up sailing in the Midwest. While in college for international studies, I learned there was such a thing as “maritime law,” and I immediately knew that was what I wanted to do. I visited Tulane Law School while researching my baccalaureate thesis—searches and seizures on the high seas—and knew that was where I wanted to go to law school to concentrate on maritime law. I was able to get my U.S. Coast Guard 100-ton master’s license while in New Orleans and was also quite fortunate to clerk for the excellent maritime firm Gelpi, Sullivan, Caroll & Laborde. The rest is history.
What do you find most interesting about the maritime industry?
Everything about the maritime industry is interesting—the people, the stories, the travel, the casualties, the contracts, the technology, the international aspects, the camaraderie, the challenges. Every day I learn something new, and I get to work with some of the best maritime industry professionals in the world.
How do you build and maintain relationships with clients?
Be responsive, stay in touch, do good work, and know when you need to refer your client to someone else.
What do you like to do outside of your legal practice?
Sailing, outdoor exercise, travel, time with family, good food and drinks, live music/plays/shows.
G. Evan Spencer
What do you find most interesting about the maritime industry?
The maritime industry plays a profound role in nearly every piece of modern society. From oil and gas extraction and production, to industrial and commercial processes, to consumer goods and services, maritime is pivotal to every industry. This gives our work as maritime lawyers an outsized impact not only on our maritime clients, but on the downstream industries our clients serve.
What trends are you following at the moment?
Working primarily out of Blank Rome’s Houston office, I am following trends relating to offshore wind development, energy and environmental issues, and tariff implications on trade. The Port of Houston handles more foreign waterborne tonnage than any other U.S. port, making tariff issues especially relevant. The greater Houston Ship Channel area is the largest petrochemical complex in the United States, and ports along the Gulf Coast continue to develop import and export facilities for petroleum products that rival some of the largest on earth. Texas and other Gulf states are also among the leaders in development of vessels and equipment to service the offshore wind industry, even with the policy vacillations affecting that sector over recent years.
How does Blank Rome’s deep experience in the maritime industry provide the firm with a competitive advantage?
Blank Rome Maritime has not become the leader among U.S. maritime firms by accident. Rather, we work daily to make sure our subject-matter knowledge and client satisfaction continue to deepen and grow across the United States and beyond. Whether the work involves a transaction or a dispute or takes place in blue water or brown, our deep bench of experience across all major U.S. ports and waterways ensures we are ready and able to handle any issue our clients may experience. It is this breadth of knowledge and focus on continued growth that provides us with a competitive advantage, an advantage that translates to efficient and effective service for our clients throughout every stage of a matter.
How does the group work with Blank Rome’s other service lines?
Our position within Blank Rome’s broader group of exceptional attorneys allows us to streamline client services in ways other firms may not be able to. Whether our clients or their counterparts have ancillary issues relating to insolvency, intellectual property, government contracts, employment, corporate, or any other service, our ability to leverage internal resources to vet or handle such issues ends up ensuring a wholistic approach is used to handle items that arise during representation, ultimately resulting in better results and a more efficient use of client resources.
This article is one in a series of articles written for Blank Rome’s MAINBRACE: September 2025 edition.