Introduction
- The charterparty
- The bill of lading contract
- Charterers’ bills of lading
- The demise charterparty
Implied obligations in a contract of affreightment
The undertaking as to seaworthiness
- Nature of the obligation
- Incidence of obligation
- Burden of proof
- Effect of breach
Obligation for reasonable dispatch
- Effect of breach
Obligation not to deviate from the agreed route
- Justifiable deviations
- Liberty clauses
- The effect of breach
The obligation to nominate a safe port
- The period covered by the warranty
- The nature of the risks covered
- The nature of the undertaking – remedies available for breach
- The scope of the undertaking
The obligation not to ship dangerous goods
- Meaning of dangerous goods
- Nature of liability
- Liability under the Hague/Visby Rules
- Statutory regulation
The effect of frustration
- Types of frustration
- Factors to be taken into consideration
- Effect of frustration
The voyage charterparty
An overview of the charter
- Introductory clauses
- Cargo clauses
- Freight clauses
- Laytime provisions
- Other clauses
- Performance of the charterparty
The arrived ship
- Charterparty provisions shifting risk of delay
- Readiness to load or discharge
The preliminary voyage
- Nomination of port of loading
- ‘Or so near thereto as she may safely get’
- The voyage to the loading port
The loading operation
- Division of responsibility
- Provision of cargo
- Laytime
- Demurrage and damages for detention
The carrying voyage
The discharging operation
- Delivery
The time charterparty
General legal overview
- Clause describing vessel
- The charter period
- Off-hire
- Payment of hire – right to withdraw for non-payment
- Employment and indemnity clause
- Return to the vessel
Description of the vessel
Period of hire
- Specific clauses
- Effect of overlap
Payment for hire
- Payment in cash
- Payment in advance
The off-hire clause
- Period of off-hire
- Effects of the operation of the off-hire clause
Deductions from hire
Right to withdraw vessel for non-payment of hire
- Requirements for exercise of right of withdrawal
- Waiver of right to withdraw
- Possible bars to exercise of the right of withdrawal
- Effect of exercise of right to withdraw
Employment and agency clause
Redelivery of the vessel
Bills of lading and their functions
Historical introduction
Functions of a bill of lading
- As receipt for goods shipped
- As evidence of the contract of carriage
- As a document of title
Presentation of a bill of lading
Problems in presentation
- Short form bill of lading
- The waybill
- The straight bill of lading
- The registry system
- A possible practical solution
Electronic bills of lading
- Atlantic Container Line datafreight system
- Electronic data exchange systems
- Bolero
Switch bills
Application of the Hague/Visby Rules
Application of the Rules
- Types of carriage covered by the Rules
- The cargoes excluded
- Period of coverage of the Rules
Legal effect of the Rules
Basic provisions of the Hague/Visby Rules
- Duties of the carrier
- Rights and immunities of the carrier
- Other provisions
Incorporation of the Hague /Visby Rules in charterparties
- Effect of incorporation
Bills of lading – Hamburg Rules
- Introduction
- Scope of application of the Rules
- Basic carrier liability
- Limitation of liability
- Loss of right to limit liability
- Other provisions
- Prospects for adoption of the Hamburg Rules
- Later developments
- The CMI/UNCITRAL project
Bills of lading issued under charterparties
- Where bill of lading issued to charterer
- Where bill issued to third-party shipper
- Who is the carrier?
- What are the terms of the contract?
- Where bills indorsed by charterer to a third party
- Shipowner’s recourse against charterer
Problems of combined transport
The liability of the carrier
- Locating damage or loss
- Limitation of liability
- Claims in tort
- Combined transport and documentary and credits
- Effect of transhipment
- Transhipment and documentary credits
- Multimodal Convention 1980
Exceptions
Common law exceptions
- Act of God
- Act of the Queen’s enemies
- Inherent vice
Contractual exceptions
- Perils of the sea
- Restraint of princes
- Strikes or lockouts
- Defective packing
The Hague/Visby exceptions
- Act, neglect, or default of the master, mariner, pilot or the servants of the carrier in the navigation or in the management of the ship
- Fire, unless caused by the actual fault or privity of the carrier
- The catch–all exception
Bars to the exceptions
- Negligence
- Unseaworthiness
- Fundamental breach
Limitation of liability
Merchant Shipping Act 1995
- Parties covered
- Types of claim covered
- Limitation amount
- Breaking the limits
Freight
The basic obligation
- Calculation of freight
- Deductions from freight
- The effect of deviation
Advance freight
Specialised types of freight
- Lump sum freight
- Pro-rata freight
- Back freight
- Dead freight
Payment of freight
- Party from whom freight due
- Party from whom freight payable
Shipowners’ liens
Liens at common law
- Requirements for the exercise of the common law lien for freight
Express contractual liens
- Characteristic of contractual lien
Dispute settlement
Problems of conflicts of laws
- Jurisdiction of the English courts
- Choice of forum
- Choice of law clause
Security for claims
- The action in rem
- The freezing injunction
Arbitration
- The Arbitration Act 1996
- Basic principles
- Types of arbitration
- Commencement of arbitration
- Appeal from arbitration award
- Other challenges to an award
- Control by the court of arbitration proceedings
- Enforcement of arbitration awards
Breach of contract
Forms of breach
- Anticipatory breach
The effects of breach
- Conditions and warranties
- Intermediate terms
- The effects of a repudiatory breach
The action for damages
- Remoteness of damage
- Measure of damages
- Other relevant considerations in assessing damages
Remedies other than remedies
- Specific performance
- Injunction
Example Candidate Response Booklet
Example Candidate Response (ECR) Booklets are a source of crucial information for Centres and Candidates as they use real candidate responses. We ask Senior Examiners to comment on five or more responses in terms of why the mark was awarded with commentary about how to improve the answer (if necessary).