J. Dirk Schwenk
Mr. Schwenk graduated with Honors from the University of Maryland School of Law and was the recipient of the William P. Cunningham Award as the student who demonstrated exceptional service and achievement while at the law school. Prior to founding Baylaw he was a Member of Lochner and Schwenk, LLC. Mr. Schwenk is a member of the Maryland Bar and bars of the Federal Court for the District of Maryland, and the 4th and 11th Circuit Courts of Appeal. He is the author/editor of Preparation and of Tort Claims, Chapter 11 of the book Practice Manual for the Maryland Lawyer as well as many articles on riparian rights, vessel excise tax and other issues in admiralty and waterfront law. He presented on Marina Liability at the International Marina Conference, 2005, and was a 2005 Outstanding Service Award winner from the Marine Trades Association of Maryland. He presented on the interplay between marina contracts and traditional tort theories for the Mid Atlantic Mariners Club in 2007, and on Florida yacht tax changes and their implications for the Yacht Brokers Association of America in 2010. His current cases include waterfront property disputes, admiralty and maritime law, insurance defense, personal injury, insurance coverage, and vessel excise tax. He is a Certified Marine Investigator through the International Association of Marine Investigators, a member of the the Mid-Atlantic Mariners Club (for whom he is the Webmaster) and Marine Trades Association of Maryland.
Mr. Schwenk is a member of the Severn Sailing Association, where he sails J-24s and Jet-14s with his wife Stefanie. He is a past President of the Jet 14 Class Association, and the 6 time Chesapeake High Point champion in that class. In his remaining free time he is the father of two sons, plays basketball and Ultimate Frisbee, and writes and records acoustic music.