Richard Preston began his professional career as an able bodied seaman in 1974, eventually earning his U.S.C.G. Masters License in 1986. In 1990, Mr. Preston matriculated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned Bachelors degrees in Civil and Environmental Engineering and Political Science. In 1994, Mr. Preston was awarded a two-year scholarship to read Jurisprudence at University College, Oxford. Afterwards, Mr. Preston interned at the International Maritime Organization in London where he assessed the feasibility of placing Radio Frequency Identification tags in containers. Upon Mr. Preston's return to Boston, he earned his Masters degree at MIT in Ocean Systems Management and subsequently commenced PhD studies at MIT's Sloan School of Business Management.

During Mr. Preston's years at MIT, he was the recipient of several National Sea Grant awards; employed by the U.S.C.G. to improve its Vessel Traffic Service in preparation for Boston Harbor's Central Artery ("Big Dig") project; and was a fellow at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute where he assisted the U.S.C.G. in resolving the legal issues surrounding the implementation of Electronic Chart Display and Information Systems (ECDIS) aboard ships. Mr. Preston taught Maritime Law for two years at MIT and also applied his legal, engineering, and ship production skills in the legal department at Massachusetts Heavy Industries, a venture established to reopen the Fore River (Quincy) Shipyard in Boston. He has authored, co-authored, and edited several publications and remains active in the field of education.

Mr. Preston attended Yale Law School and, after earning his Juris Doctorate, he was awarded a fellowship at Tulane University's Maritime Law Center, where he engaged in maritime law research and simultaneously earned his Master of Laws degree in Admiralty Law. While at Tulane, Mr. Preston also served as a distinguished LL.M. member of the Tulane Maritime Law Journal .

Since joining Meyer Orlando 2004, Mr. Preston has represented a wide range of clients on maritime, energy, insurance, commercial and regulatory matters. Mr. Preston is a member of the State Bar of Texas and admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas. He is also a member of the Houston Bar Association, the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, the Houston Maritime Arbitrators Association, the Houston Mariners Club and the Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers.