State of Maryland Secures Record Dali Bridge Settlement

The State of Maryland has finalized a $2.25 billion settlement with the owner and operator of the containership *Dali *following the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, making it the largest legal recovery ever reached in a maritime case.

The settlement resolves claims brought against Singapore-based Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Pte. Ltd., the owner and operator of the Singapore-flagged Dali. The vessel struck the bridge on March 26, 2024, causing the structure to collapse and resulting in the deaths of six construction workers.

The agreement was announced by attorneys representing the State of Maryland, alongside the Maryland Attorney General’s Office and external legal teams. The compensation covers losses linked to the bridge collapse, environmental impacts, lost toll income, disruption to the Port of Baltimore, and wider economic damage suffered across the state.

“This settlement is an important step toward making Maryland whole,” Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown previously said when the agreement in principle was first announced in April.

The final settlement amount far exceeds the approximately $43.7 million liability limit Grace Ocean and Synergy sought under the Limitation of Liability Act of 1851, a maritime law that allows shipowners to cap liability based on the post-incident value of a vessel. The agreement was reached shortly before court proceedings were due to begin over whether the companies could rely on those protections.

While Maryland’s claims against the vessel owner and operator have now been settled, the state has reserved the right to pursue claims against other potentially responsible parties, including matters related to the vessel’s design and modifications.

The legal situation intensified further this week after federal prosecutors revealed criminal charges against Synergy Marine, associated management companies, and technical superintendent Radhakrishnan Karthik Nair. According to prosecutors, the companies knowingly operated the *Dali *with unsafe modifications that weakened key electrical backup systems onboard, contributing to the blackout that left the vessel without steering or propulsion shortly before impact. Investigators allege operators relied on a flushing pump that was not designed to restart automatically after a blackout, which reportedly contributed to a second power failure following the initial electrical issue.

Shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has separately claimed that the vessel’s operators bypassed original safety systems after delivery by replacing automatic fuel supply pumps with the flushing pump arrangement.

The National Transportation Safety Board previously identified a loose signal wire inside a high-voltage switchboard as the trigger for the first blackout aboard the nearly 1,000-foot containership.

The bridge collapse shut down the Port of Baltimore for several weeks, disrupted regional supply chains, and diverted more than 34,000 vehicles per day around the harbor area.

Overall economic losses linked to the disaster are estimated to exceed $5 billion, while rebuilding costs for the Francis Scott Key Bridge are projected at between $4.3 billion and $5.2 billion. Completion is currently expected around 2030.

Kelley Drye partner William J. Jackson, who acted as assistant counsel for Maryland, described the agreement as “historic” and praised the legal teams involved in achieving the recovery. David Reisman, maritime shareholder and lead trial counsel at Liskow & Lewis, added: “We hope this settlement — one of the largest maritime settlements that we’ve seen in 20 years — brings not just financial resolution, but also a measure of peace, closure, and the necessary resources for Maryland and its residents to rebuild.”