Εισηγητής
Vera Alexandropoulou, LL.M, Founding Partner, Alexandropoulou Law Firm
Vera Alexandropoulou has a legal and financial background; she is a qualified Greek lawyer since 1998, UK Solicitor since 2004, registered at the Cyprus Bar since 2016. She is a graduate from Athens Law School and has post graduate studies at Heidelberg and Harvard Universities. She has past business experience at Norton Rose Law Firm, at a major shipping law firm in New York “Freehill Hogan and Mahar” and in Harvard Business School (HBS).
Vera Alexandropoulou has been a Legal Counsel of the Piraeus Port Authority (PPA) with tenure of 13 years (2005-2018). She is the Founder of Alexandropoulou Law Firm, a boutique law firm based in the heart of Piraeus, established in 2005. The areas of the Law Firm’s expertise include project finance and project structuring, shipping, delivering integrated advice on all aspects of domestic and international maritime transactions to banks, financial institutions, private investors, owners and operators, arrangers, government and inter-governmental agencies, yards, insurers, P&I clubs, consultants, and other intermediaries, including experience in advising on charter parties and shipbuilding contracts.
Being a certified TUV Austria Data Protection Officer (DPO), Vera Alexandropoulou has conducted as a tutor several seminars on the new EU Regulation 2016/679 (GDPR) and provides legal counseling services to individuals in the field of compliance to the EU Regulation, among others, to shipping companies. She has been delivering lectures on the topic of ‘Sustainability in Shipping and Ports’ at the Athens University of Economics and Business
Since October 2019, she is cooperating with Athena Research and Innovation Center in the context of EIT Climate-KIC Hub Greece. She is the Vice President of Thalassa Foundation, a Swiss-based, non-profit environmental organization aiming to combat marine pollution that affects the marine eco system. Also, she is a member of WISTA- Women International Shipping and Trading Association. Among her selected publications is “Shipping Finance in Greece” in HSBA Handbook on Ship Finance, (Orestis et al.Springer, 2015). She is also the main author of a paper on “Sustainable Ports” which is to be published soon in the coming book “Oceans of Tomorrow II “(Springer Publishing). She speaks fluently English, French, German and Spanish, while she understands Chinese.
Mary Pothitos, Maritime Insurance & Claims handling consultant, Owner, PARALEGAL MARITIME SERVICES
Maria Pothitos finished school in the UK and graduated from the Law school of Wolverhampton University, UK. After working two years to gain practical experience in the City of London, in 1989, joint the family business of shipowning and shipmanagement in Greece, Pothitos Shipping Co S.A., as the Legal and Insurance Director and later in the same post, at N.A.N.E. Shipping Management S.A. until 2014. Experienced with handling cargo claims. Actively involved in the management and operation of the fleet. In 2014 was appointed Advisor on International Relations at Hellenic Shortsea Shipowners Association and Director of the Shortsea Promotion Centre (SPC) – Greece and served a two-year term. From January till December 2016, was a Member of the Board, of the European Shortsea Network (ESN). In 2016 she started PARALEGAL MARITIME SERVICES, offering professional assistance for efficient and cost-effective management of claims. Developed and deliver the seminars: Marine Insurance and Claims Handling – for DNV GL Academy, Co-developed Salvage and Wreck Removal, Co-developed EU GDPR for shipping.