SPEAKERS

Keynote

Speakers

Jim Moseley, Jr. is an experienced trial attorney with the law firm of GrayRobinson, P.A. practicing in the area of civil litigation. Mr. Moseley has achieved the highest possible Martindale-Hubbell peer rating with an AV recognition. He also received annual recognition in the Best Lawyers in America. Mr. Moseley has been awarded Lawyer of the Year for Maritime in Jacksonville Florida for multiple years by Best Lawyers in America. He is a recognized member of Chambers U.S.A. (Band 1): Transportation: Shipping/Maritime: Litigation (outside New York). He is also a Titular Member of the Comité Maritime International. Mr. Moseley is currently President of the Maritime Law Association of the United States. Mr. Moseley is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College and the Cumberland School of Law. He is Board Certified by the Florida Bar in Admiralty and Maritime practice. Mr. Moseley also served as the Chairman of the Maritime Law Association’s Marine Ecology and Maritime Criminal Law Committee and served as Chairman of the Young Lawyer’s Committee. Mr. Moseley served as a Master of the Bench in the Chester Bedell Inn of Court. He has also served as an Editorial Fellow with the publication, American Maritime Cases. He has also lectured and had articles published on various aspects of maritime law and federal civil procedure. He has been a member of the Florida Bar and the Georgia Bar for over 38 years.

Lunch

Megan Eddings is the Chief Strategy Officer of New Wave Offshore Energy, where she leads global business development, strategic partnerships, and growth initiatives across the offshore energy sector. Known for building trusted relationships and uncovering opportunities in complex, high-pressure environments, she has helped expand New Wave's global footprint and strengthen partnerships with leading energy companies, including ExxonMobil, SBM Offshore, and TotalEnergies.

A graduate of the University of Virginia with a degree in Chemistry, Megan was named Siemens Rookie of the Year and quickly established herself as a top-performing sales and business development professional. She is also a successful entrepreneur, inventing two products rooted in her chemistry background, before achieving a successful business exit in 2023.

Recognized by Forbes, NASDAQ, Inc. Magazine, and the Houston Business Journal as a "40 Under 40" honoree, Megan combines her experience in science, entrepreneurship, and executive leadership to deliver engaging keynote presentations on resilience, mindset, and leadership. Known for blending humor, authenticity, and real-world business experience, she inspires audiences to navigate challenges with confidence, perspective, and the belief that some of life's greatest lessons and best stories begin with the words, "Well, that didn't go as planned."

Moderators

Jason R. Kenney is a partner at Staines, Eppling & Kenney, LLC and focuses his practice in the fields of admiralty and maritime law, energy, construction, and catastrophic personal injuries. His practice in these areas consists of both litigation (primary defense counsel) and monitoring roles. Additionally, he assists his clients with contractual issues, including Master Service Agreements, Bare Boat Charters, Boarding Agreements, Defense and Indemnity Agreements, and other contracts germane to the areas in which he practices. He has tried numerous personal injury and collision/allision cases to judges and juries in both federal and state courts in Louisiana and Texas. He represents a variety of clients including boat owners, maritime service companies, oil and gas (energy) service companies, crane companies, construction companies, the Port of New Orleans, and multiple domestic and international insurers.

He has presented in various areas, including the Jones Act, general maritime negligence, maintenance and cure, punitive damages, seaman status, general marine safety, developments in maritime contract law, personal injury case evaluation, mock trial and trial practice to industry groups, companies, insurers, attorneys and even multiple presentations for the Lloyd’s Market Association at Lloyd's of London. Jason regularly travels the Gulf Coast and abroad and works with a variety of insurers in the London and domestic markets.

Jason received an undergraduate degree in Finance from Louisiana State University and a juris doctorate from Tulane Law School. Since becoming an attorney, he has represented clients across the United States and overseas and has appeared on their behalf in state courts in Louisiana, Texas, Alabama, and Mississippi as well as federal courts in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Panelists

Laura Block is Senior Vice President and Head of U.S. Marine Claims at Ascot Insurance Company, where she leads a team of Ocean and Inland Marine claims adjusters. A maritime attorney by training, Laura began her career practicing Admiralty and Maritime law in New York before moving into marine insurance claims. Since joining Ascot in 2018 as its first U.S. marine adjuster, she has helped build the company’s marine claims capabilities and is known for her technical expertise, collaborative leadership, and strategic approach to complex marine claims.

Benjamin “Ben” Gifford is a Vice President and Director with Condon Claims Management, Inc, U.S. (CCM). He specializes in the management of complex marine, energy, transportation, and liability claims, with a particular focus on serving the maritime insurance industry. Ben began his insurance claims career in 1999 as an adjuster handling liability, commercial, and residential property claims throughout the Gulf Coast region. He began handling marine claims in 2006 and has since remained actively involved in the marine claim’s community, maintaining a broad professional network that includes P&I Clubs, marine insurers, maritime attorneys, surveyors, and claims professionals throughout the United States and internationally. His work reflects a commitment to delivering practical and effective claims solutions for clients operating in the marine and offshore sectors.

Ben was key in developing CCM’s proactive 24/7/365 callout service, which supports clients by coordinating medical treatment and initial claim investigations for injuries and illnesses that occur involving a client’s employees in the first instance. He has also supported the company’s continued growth and expanded capabilities throughout the United States. Ben has helped advance initiatives that strengthen CCM’s presence in the marine claims market, both domestically and in the London market, including expanded third-party administration (TPA) services, crew medical claims management, bodily injury claims handling, loss and safety analysis and strategic acquisitions that have increased the firm’s national and international footprint.

Known for his collaborative approach and strong industry relationships, Ben continues to play an important role in expanding CCM’s presence within the U.S. maritime insurance market while delivering responsive claims management solutions to clients across the country and abroad.

Landis Knorr is a senior underwriter with Tokio Marine GX. He works on a wide variety of lower-carbon energy risks, including projects using solar, battery, onshore wind, nuclear, fuel cell and other technologies. Landis joined the company, then operating as GCube, in 2020. He is based in the San Francisco Bay Area and supports clients in the US and Canada.

Prior to joining Tokio Marine GX, Landis was a commercial energy regional manager for Chubb where he serviced renewable power, traditional power, and mining clients in the pacific region. He previously held the role as the manager of the environmental risk underwriting team for Chubb’s northwest region.

Jim Palaia is the North American Nuclear Energy Leader, based in Hartford, CT, USA. As the North American Leader, he is responsible for providing nuclear industry leadership and support, serving in an advocacy role with nuclear insurers and regulators, and assisting with program strategy for nuclear clients worldwide. As part of these efforts, Jim is staying apprised of industry risk issues and emerging trends, as well as providing insights to Nuclear Energy Insurance Limited (NEIL) given his longstanding relationship with the mutual. He brings over 15 years of US nuclear industry experience to his role in consultancy, underwriting, and operations. Jim joined Marsh in January of 2025.

Prior to joining Marsh, Jim Palaia was the Vice President and Chief Underwriting Officer at American Nuclear Insurers (ANI). Under his leadership, Jim was responsible for overseeing the domestic US and foreign books of business which included the placement of nuclear liability insurance for the US commercial nuclear power industry and distributing reinsurance capacity for nuclear liability and property damage foreign nuclear utilities via the nuclear pooling system.

Since joining marsh, Jim’s principal clients and focus has been on large, multinational power and utility nuclear (fission) risks across the globe.