naming.factory.webservices.ServiceRefFactory.initHandlerChain method does the following: HandlerInfo handlerref (parameter) HandlerChain handlerList = (HandlerChain) handlerRegistry.getHandlerChain(portName); handlerList.add(handlerref); Now according to http://www.j2ee.me/j2ee/1.4/docs/api/javax/xml/rpc/handler/HandlerChain.html HandlerChain, "All elements in the HandlerChain are of the type javax.xml.rpc.handler.Handler." However HandlerInfo (javax.xml.rpc.handler.HandlerInfo) is not of the type Handler. HandlerInfo should be passed to the init() method of a Handler instance.
Note that due to a data loss on 26/27 Nov 2009 the issue that was originally created as bug 48297 was lost. It has been re-created as bug 48308.
Fixed in 7.0.x and will be included in 7.0.1 onwards. I don;t have a test case so the fix is based on a review of the JavaDoc and a review of the code.