J. Ryan Melogy

Contact Ryan by emailing Help@JusticeForMariners.com

or call/text: +1 (347) 562-9119

Ryan began his legal journey as a maritime whistleblower, and eventually served as a victim and star witness in the first public sexual misconduct Suspension & Revocation trial prosecuted by the U.S. Coast Guard in more than 30 years.

After founding Maritime Legal Aid & Advocacy in 2020, Ryan worked with USMMA Midshipman Hope Hicks to publish her harrowing “Midshipman-X” blog post that forever changed the maritime industry and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Ryan then represented Hope and her classmate “Midshipman-Y” in their civil suits against Maersk Line, and represented both women in dealings with the Coast Guard Investigative Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Justice, and Coast Guard S&R Prosecutors. The accused perpetrators in both the X and Y cases were eventually forced to surrender their Merchant Mariner Credentials to the Coast Guard, and were banned from working in the U.S. maritime industry.

Ryan was instrumental in passage of the landmark maritime safety legislation known as the “Safer Seas Act,” and wrote the influential policy paper that led to the historic legislative strengthening of 46 USC 10104, the shipboard sexual misconduct reporting law that serves as the foundation of the Safer Seas Act.

In recent years, Ryan has been involved in the most high profile and precedent-setting Civil, Criminal, and U.S. Coast Guard Suspension & Revocation actions affecting survivors of maritime sexual harassment & abuse, as well as victims of human and sexual trafficking.

Ryan has worked tirelessly to expose the rampant sexual harassment and abuse plaguing the maritime industry and the U.S. military, to hold perpetrators accountable, and to obtain justice for victims and survivors. He handles cases all over the country, and routinely partners with excellent and experienced lawyers and law firms from across the United States to handle complex litigation in any venue.

Ryan Melogy is a graduate of the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) at Kings Point and the University of Virginia School of Law. He served for 8 years as an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve, and holds an unlimited tonnage Chief Mate’s license.

Contact Ryan by emailing Help@JusticeForMariners.com

or call/text: +1 (347) 562-9119