P&I & Claims led from operational experience.
From pre-loss prevention through to post-casualty recovery, we support shipowners, ship managers, P&I clubs, and P&I correspondents on the full lifecycle of P&I matters arising at Indian ports and inland container depots.
Where our specific expertise changes outcomes.
Lex Dux LLP is a technical and commercial consultancy. We work between the club's lawyers and the surveyor on the ground. We bring partner-led time, sea-experience-led judgment, and direct accountability for the matter.
The firm's founder is a Master Mariner (F.G.) with ten years in command and fourteen years as GM Marine Operations and Director Marine & Commercial Operations. That history matters in P&I work because the right questions in a claims investigation, a casualty response, or a cargo dispute often turn on operational reality that desk-based advisers cannot reconstruct accurately.
We accept engagements where our specific expertise produces materially better outcomes than generic P&I representation would. The matters where we add the most value tend to involve technical operational disputes (machinery failures, navigation incidents, cargo handling), casualty response coordination requiring rapid on-scene technical interpretation, charterparty cargo claims with operational complexity, container survey and inspection work at the Delhi NCR inland container depots, and independent incident investigation where a combined Master Mariner / Chief Engineer perspective produces defensible findings.
We do not provide legal services. Where a matter needs legal advice, litigation or court representation, the client instructs its own lawyers, and we work alongside them on the technical side. Our positioning is deliberately narrow.
Specific scopes we deliver well.
Each of the six areas below is a discrete scope of work we accept on a project or retainer basis. Engagements typically start with a defined deliverable and expand into broader retainer relationships where the fit is right.
Claims handling & advisory
Investigation, evidence preservation, witness statements, technical opinion, settlement-positioning analysis, and ongoing advisory through quantum determination. We work either as primary handler or in support of the club's appointed lawyers or correspondent where specialist input is needed.
Pre-loss prevention surveys
On-board operational risk reviews for clubs and members. Bridge and engine room observation, SMS implementation review, master and crew competency assessment, port-state-control readiness. Written reports with prioritised recommendations.
Casualty response coordination
On-scene response for pollution incidents, collisions, groundings, fires, and serious machinery failures. Master mariner credibility on board, port-state and DG Shipping interface ashore, evidence preservation, and immediate exposure assessment for the club.
P&I correspondent support
Specialist technical support to P&I correspondents whose general practice doesn't extend to the specific matter type. We work in second-seat support or take direct conduct as the correspondent prefers, without competing for the primary relationship.
Cargo claims & subrogation
Pre-discharge survey coordination, claim quantum analysis, defence preparation, and subrogation work on recovered claims. Particular strength in matters with technical loading, stowage, or handling questions that turn on operational expertise.
Container survey & inspection, Delhi NCR
Pre-loading inspection and post-discharge survey of containers at the inland container depots and CFSs across Delhi NCR, including Tughlakabad (ICD TKD), Dadri and Patparganj. Condition surveys, damage assessment, seal verification, stuffing and de-stuffing supervision, and documentary evidence packages for cargo claims. Our Delhi NCR base makes this fast and cost-effective for North India cargo movements.
Independent maritime incident investigation
Independent investigation of collisions, groundings, machinery failures, cargo incidents, personal injury, and serious near-misses, instructed by owners, P&I clubs, or insurers. Master Mariner and Marine Chief Engineer perspectives combined: bridge and engine-room root-cause analysis, evidence preservation, witness interview, and defensible written findings that withstand scrutiny.
Partner-led, scoped tightly, accountable end-to-end.
Every P&I engagement at Lex Dux LLP is led directly by Capt. Pramod Kumar Singh. There are no junior-staff hand-offs, no associate review chains, no document review centres. You receive the partner who took the instruction, the partner who develops strategy, and the partner who attends the meetings, signs the correspondence, and stands accountable for the outcome.
For new instructions, we run an initial assessment without obligation. It is an exploratory conversation to confirm conflict-clearance, understand the matter, and decide whether our specific expertise materially helps. Where it does, we issue a written scope of work covering deliverables, timelines, and fee structure before any substantive work begins. Where it doesn't, we say so and where possible suggest who is better placed.
Fee structures are matter-appropriate. Casualty response and discrete advisory matters typically run hourly; ongoing P&I correspondent support or member retainers run on monthly fee structures. We are transparent about both and confirm explicitly which applies before engagement.
Response commitments: within one working day for new enquiries, within four hours for matters flagged as casualty or urgent.
Common questions, candidly answered.
Do you act as a P&I correspondent yourselves?
Lex Dux is not currently on the standing panel of any International Group P&I club as a primary correspondent. We accept direct instructions from clubs and FD&D managers on individual matters, acting as primary correspondent for the specific matter or in specialist support of the incumbent correspondent where the club already has a correspondent instructed.
For overseas maritime firms, we provide on-ground technical support on matters in Indian ports: surveys, evidence gathering and expert input. We do not act as lawyers.
How does sea experience actually matter in P&I work?
Three concrete ways. First, in claims investigations and casualty response, the right line of inquiry often turns on operational reality: what a master would actually do at 0300 with the equipment in question, what the engine room watchkeeping practice would have shown, how a particular cargo handling decision gets made on a real vessel. Desk-based advisers often miss the relevant questions entirely.
Second, in technical evidence, credibility matters. Someone who has actually stood watch on the bridge of an ocean-going vessel explains a navigation incident differently from someone who has only read about it.
Third, in crew interviews and master-witness work, seafarers speak more openly to someone from their own profession. This improves the quality of the evidence.
Can you handle urgent casualty response?
Yes. Casualty-flagged enquiries receive a response within four hours; on-scene mobilisation across Indian ports is typically within 24-48 hours depending on location. Our base is Delhi NCR with Mumbai accessible within a half-day flight where matters require physical presence.
For casualty response, the early decisions about evidence preservation, statement-taking sequence, and Administration interface have outsized influence on later claim outcome. We prioritise these matters accordingly.
Do you work with foreign P&I clubs and correspondents directly?
Yes. Most of our P&I work involves international clubs (UK P&I, NorthStandard, Britannia, Gard, Steamship Mutual, others) operating through their Singapore, Hong Kong, or London desks, with matters arising in Indian waters or involving Indian counterparties.
We are familiar with the standard club correspondent appointment structures, Letters of Undertaking, security demands and forms, and the typical communication protocols. Where the matter routes through a primary Indian correspondent, we work in their second-seat; where the club instructs us directly, we report directly to the relevant claims executive.
What's the typical engagement structure?
For discrete matters: written scope of work specifying deliverables, fee structure (usually hourly with a not-to-exceed cap), and timeline. Engagement begins after written acceptance from the instructing party.
For retainer relationships (typical for active P&I correspondents or shipowner members wanting on-tap expertise): a monthly retainer covering a defined consulting hours envelope, with overflow hours billed against an agreed rate.
For casualty response: we mobilise immediately on telephone instruction with paper scoping confirmed within 24 hours. Casualty response is the one area where we do not delay engagement on documentation.
What happens if a P&I matter goes to court or arbitration?
Lex Dux is a technical and commercial consultancy and does not provide legal services. If a matter goes to court or arbitration, the club or owner instructs its own lawyers. We support them with technical evidence, expert opinion and witness preparation.
For international arbitration where technical maritime evidence is determinative, we can serve as expert witnesses or in expert-witness support capacity. This is a discrete sub-practice.
Available to P&I clubs, FD&D managers, and overseas maritime firms.
Lex Dux LLP is available to act as India correspondent and technical consultant for P&I clubs, FD&D managers, and overseas maritime firms with matters arising in Indian waters or involving Indian-seated parties. If you have a casualty, a cargo claim, a charterparty dispute, or a crew matter with an Indian dimension, we can engage directly as your on-ground technical partner.
We work in two modes. Where a club or overseas firm already has an Indian correspondent on a matter, we are available in a specialist support capacity, bringing Master Mariner and Chief Engineer technical depth where the generalist correspondent's practice does not extend. Where there is no incumbent Indian correspondent, we can act as primary correspondent for the specific matter, reporting directly to the club or overseas instructing firm.
We are familiar with International Group club structures, Letter of Undertaking and security demand formats, standard correspondent reporting protocols, and how Indian ports and authorities handle casualties and cargo claims. Conflict-clearance is confirmed before any instruction is accepted. We operate on transparent hourly or matter-based fees, reported to the instructing party's preferred format.
To discuss a specific matter or establish a standing arrangement: email contact@lexdux.com or call/WhatsApp Capt. Pramod Kumar Singh directly on +91 98714 19797. Casualty-flagged enquiries receive a response within four hours.
Conflict-clearance and an exploratory call, without obligation.
Send a brief note about the matter. We respond within one working day; within four hours for casualty-flagged enquiries.