About John Kennedy
John Kennedy Fulweiler built his professional life at the intersection of law and the sea. He studied maritime affairs as an undergraduate at the University of Rhode Island, earning a B.A. in 1994, and went on to receive a J.D. from William H. Bowen School of Law in 1997. Those credentials set a clear course. His education tied directly to the maritime work that has occupied much of his career.
Early in his career Fulweiler gravitated to admiralty matters. He served as a Proctor-in-Admiralty for the Maritime Law Association of the United States, a role that placed him in the procedural and substantive currents of federal maritime practice. He also holds membership in the Canadian Maritime Law Association, which reflects an interest in cross-border maritime issues and the international character of many marine disputes.
Fulweiler’s professional affiliations run through several state and specialty bars. He is a member of the Rhode Island Bar Association and the Florida Bar Association, and he participates in the Rhode Island Association for Justice. In industry circles he has been active as well. He belonged to the Fort Lauderdale Mariners Club and served as chair of a committee of the American Salvage Association from 2012 to 2013. These roles connect him to practitioners, ship operators, and salvage professionals who often play central parts in admiralty cases.
He is admitted to practice in multiple jurisdictions, including Arkansas, New Jersey, Rhode Island, New York and Florida. That multi-state admission allows him to pursue claims and defenses on behalf of vessel owners, insurers, salvors and other maritime clients across several court systems. His work has covered salvage and marine casualty matters, maritime lien and vessel arrest proceedings, and admiralty litigation more broadly.
Colleagues describe Fulweiler as someone who moves comfortably between courtroom procedure and the technical language of maritime operations. He has handled matters that require coordination among insurers, surveyors and port authorities. The combination of his undergraduate focus on maritime affairs and his law training gives him fluency in the specialized issues that emerge in marine cases.
Fulweiler maintains an office in the W.B. Franklin Bakery Building and continues to practice in maritime and admiralty law from that location.
