ATTORNEYS

Richard A. Nielsen

Mr. Nielsen is a Principal and Partner of Nielsen Shields, PLLC, and has practiced maritime law in Seattle for his entire legal career. Mr. Nielsen obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science in 1978, from Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Indiana. In 1981, he obtained his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, Washington, where he was Managing Editor of the University of Puget Sound Law Review and a Founding Member of the Puget Sound Public Interest Law Foundation. After law school, Mr. Nielsen was Law Clerk to the late Honorable William T. Beeks, a nationally recognized jurist who handled the entire maritime caseload in the Western District of Washington, and with whom he acquired his appreciation for and foundation in maritime law. Mr. Nielsen is an active member of the Washington State Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the Maritime Law Association of the United States, within which he sits on the Committee on Marine Torts and Casualties and the Fisheries Committee.

Since 1982, Mr. Nielsen’s practice principally has involved the defense of seamen’s personal injury and death claims arising through the Jones Act and General Maritime Law, Longshore & Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act claims and Section 905(b) negligence actions, and representing insurers in marine insurance coverage matters. Since 1990, Mr. Nielsen has been heavily involved in handling claims, and consulting with employers, brokers and insurers, relating to Jones Act/GML/LHWCA/state comp (Alaska, Washington, and California) cross-over risks and/or claims, and providing risk analysis and business practice planning for clients with multi-jurisdictional exposures. Mr. Nielsen has addressed employers, insurers and various related interests involved with maritime claims and litigation at numerous conferences and gatherings, including those sponsored by the Puget Sound Marine Claims Association, the Marine Insurance Association of Seattle, the Longshore Claims Association, the Northwest Longshore Administrators Association and the American Longshore Mutual Association.

Louis A. Shields

Mr. Shields is a Principal and Partner of Nielsen Shields, PLLC, and has practiced maritime and employment law since 1995. In 1991, Mr. Shields obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and Public Policy, with honors, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He obtained his Juris Doctor degree from Vanderbilt University Law School in 1995. Mr. Shields is a member of the Washington State Bar Association and the Hawaii Bar Association. Since 1995, Mr. Shields has represented employers, vessel owners and other related maritime interests, principally in the defense of seamen’s personal injury and passenger claims, but also in various employment disputes (including state and federal harassment and discrimination claims), insurance coverage issues and contractual matters. Mr. Shields also advises various maritime enterprises in corporate matters, risk assessment and response and loss prevention. As an active member of the King County Bar Association, Mr. Shields serves as a mediator and arbitrator under the Washington State Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution program.

Asia N. Wright

Ms. Wright is an Associate at Nielsen Shields, PLLC. She received her Bachelor of Arts degrees in Politics & Government and Business from the University of Puget Sound in 2004, and her Juris Doctor degree from California Western School of Law in 2008. At California Western, she was the Lead Articles Editor of the Law Review. While in San Diego, Ms. Wright joined the Coast Guard Auxiliary and served as her flotilla’s staff officer for vessel examinations. Before attending law school, Ms. Wright worked on cruise ships as an assistant cruise director. Ms. Wright has published three articles on cruise ship regulation: Beyond the Sea and Spector: Reconciling Port and Flag State Control over Cruise Ship Onboard Environmental Procedures and Policies, 18 DUKE EVTL. L. & POL'Y F. 215 (2007); Southern Exposure: Managing Sustainable Cruise Ship Tourism in Antarctica, 39 CAL. W. INT'L L.J. 43 (2008); and Crime Takes a Vacation: Sea Marshals and Criminal Jurisdiction over High Seas Cruise Ship Crimes, 7 LOY. MAR. L.J. 1 (2009).

Douglas R. Williams

Mr. Williams is an Associate at Nielsen Shields, PLLC. Before joining the firm in February 2011, Mr. Williams worked for over five years at the leading maritime defense firm in Tampa, Florida. Mr. Williams obtained a Bachelor of Arts in European History from Washington & Lee University in 2000. He received his Juris Doctorate, magna cum laude, from Florida State University and was member of the Order of the Coif. In law school, Mr. Williams received several book awards, including Admiralty Law. Mr. Williams clerked for the Honorable Philip Padovano of the Florida First District Court of Appeal.

Mr. Williams is licensed to practice in Washington, Florida, the District of Columbia, and before the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Williams’ professional associations include the American Bar Association, Maritime Law Association of the United States, and the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute.

Lanning M. Trueb

Mr. Trueb is Of Counsel at Nielsen Shields, PLLC. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Texas, and his Juris Doctor degree, with High Honors, from the University of Montana School of Law. For years, Mr. Trueb fished his own vessel in the Alaska Bristol Bay commercial salmon fishery. Since 1989, he has practiced exclusively in the maritime field, representing vessel owners, shipping companies, maritime insurance companies, as well as various other maritime entities, including marine insurance brokers and adjusters. With a focus in maritime litigation, Mr. Trueb has handled cases in all corners of Alaska and throughout Western Washington, including trials in the State and Federal Courts of Washington and Alaska, including the Alaska Supreme Court and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and before the Admiralty Courts of Hong Kong and various Courts in the Russian Federation. Having acted as a Mediator and Arbitrator in maritime matters, Mr. Trueb is a member of the Admiralty Law Section to the Alaska Bar Association, for which he served on the Executive Committee, and was a member of the Admiralty Rules Committee for the United States Federal District Court of Alaska, which wrote the Alaska Local Federal Supplemental Rules for Admiralty or Maritime Claims. Mr. Trueb is an active member of the Alaska Bar Association and the Washington State Bar Association.