Gerald H. Ullman (1917–2001) practiced law in New York City for forty-two years and was head of his own firm, specializing in international ocean transportation. He represented many firms, large and small, engaged in various activities related to export-import commerce.
A graduate of Dartmouth College and Harvard Law School, Ullman was a captain in the Transportation Corps of the U.S. Army during World War II, serving in various legal capacities and on a troop transport operating in the European theater.

During his distinguished career Ullman was counsel to a New York Assembly committee; Assistant Counsel to U.S. Senator Irving M. Ives in Washington, D.C.; and General Counsel to the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America. He appeared before many congressional committees, drafted the 1961 amendment on the licensing of ocean freight forwarders, and participated in the drafting of sections of the Shipping Act of 1984 and other legislation.

Ullman played a pivotal role in the lengthy litigation on the 50-Mile Rule, acting as lead counsel in the Supreme Court, and succeeded in obtaining a ruling that held unlawful the restrictive and costly union requirements that severely impeded the containerization of U.S. exports and imports.

Ullman, the author in 1967 of a treatise on forwarder law, wrote extensively on legal issues, including the restrictions on intermodal movement of traffic, as a contributor to the Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce and other publications. He is the author of the book U.S. Regulation of Ocean Transportation Under the Shipping Act of 1984.