Baltimore Bridge Collapse: One Year Later

By: Linda Chiem

Cohen Seglias partner Michael McKenna was featured in Law360’s coverage of the complex legal landscape surrounding the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, one year after a cargo ship struck a support column and triggered the fatal incident. The article analyzes how the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) recent findings, pointing to missed risk assessments by the Maryland Transportation Authority, could affect liability in the multi-billion-dollar litigation.

Mike, who focuses his practice on construction litigation, called the NTSB’s interim report a “game-changer” for the ongoing federal court case, stating, “It didn’t just open up a new pathway, it opened up a new freeway… This puts a different light on [the shipowner’s] actions.”

The NTSB’s findings may shift some liability away from the vessel’s owner and operator and open the door for additional claims against government entities, further complicating one of the most significant maritime legal battles in recent history.

Federal accident investigators’ recent determination that Maryland could’ve done more to protect Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge from a devastating collapse may complicate the sprawling legal battle over liability and damages in the year since a cargo ship struck the bridge and crippled a major East Coast transportation hub.

In the immediate aftermath of the March 26, 2024, incident, much of the scrutiny fell onto the owner and manager of the Singapore-flagged container ship, the Dali, that slammed into a Key Bridge support column, triggering a collapse that killed six construction workers and hampered access to the Port of Baltimore for several months.