Specialist Areas · Northern Rivers
1 maritime & admiralty law firm in Northern Rivers, New South Wales, including Lismore, Ballina, Byron Bay, Tweed Heads.
1 firm
Hastings Point, NSW · Northern Rivers
O'Reilly Sever & Co provides legal services in Hastings Point, NSW. Listed practice areas include Maritime & Admiralty Law and Litigation & Dispute Resolution.
They act in charters, collisions, cargo claims and admiralty proceedings.
Shipping, boating and marine incidents raise complex liability and jurisdiction questions.
The Admiralty Act 1988 gives the Federal Court power to arrest ships. The Australian Maritime Safety Authority regulates commercial shipping, and state maritime agencies regulate recreational boating.
Understand the next step
Describe the vessel, activity, agreement and jurisdictions involved. Commercial shipping, charter, employment and a private vessel dispute may require different expertise.
Ask about urgent notices or enforcement issues and clarify the exact specialist scope.
For matters involving Tweed Heads and Queensland, ask about cross-border experience. A nearby office is not enough to establish whether a lawyer can advise on property, proceedings or a business on the other side of the border.
For maritime & admiralty law, ask which parts of the work the firm handles itself and whether it has relevant NSW experience. Let the lawyer know if a property, employer, other party or existing proceeding is outside Northern Rivers. Your home address alone does not determine the applicable process.
Provide the agreement, notice or receiving authority’s instructions. Explain the objective and any international connection.
Ask about comparable work, professional qualifications and coordination with technical advisers. For certification, confirm exactly what the receiving organisation requires.
Agree on the deliverable, whether a document, opinion, negotiation, regulatory response or representation. Record assumptions and exclusions.
Identify charges for technical reviews, reports, translations, certification and external professionals. These may sit outside a standard consultation.
Ask for a written scope identifying the work you are authorising, the person responsible and when costs will be reviewed. If you only want advice on one step, say so before the firm begins wider work.
Supply regulatory, transaction and overseas receiving dates. Ask about external processing time rather than treating an appointment as completion.
In New South Wales, most criminal and minor civil matters start in the Local Court, with more serious matters in the District Court and Supreme Court. Tenancy, strata, consumer and guardianship disputes usually go to NCAT. Solicitors are licensed by the Law Society of New South Wales, and complaints about lawyers go to the Office of the Legal Services Commissioner.
Good to know
The power of courts to hear maritime claims, including arresting ships.
Most matters start in the Local Court. More serious cases go to the District Court or the Supreme Court of NSW. Family law matters are heard by the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.
Practising certificates in New South Wales are managed by the Law Society of New South Wales. You can check a solicitor's status on its public register or by contacting it directly.
Directory guidance updated 19 September 2026. General information to help you prepare for a conversation with a professional; not advice about your individual matter. Check current requirements with the relevant authority.