Maritime Law

I

Introduction

Maritime Law, branch of law relating to commerce and navigation on the high seas and on other navigable waters. Specifically, the term refers to the body of customs, legislation, international treaties, and court decisions pertaining to ownership and operation of vessels, transport of passengers and cargo on them, and rights and obligations of their crews while in transit.

II

History

The origins of maritime law go back to antiquity. Because no country has jurisdiction over the seas, it has been necessary for nations to reach agreements regarding ways of dealing with ships, crews, and cargoes when disputes arise. The earliest agreements were probably based on a body of ancient customs that had developed initially as practical solutions to common problems. Many of these customs became part of Roman civil law. After the fall of the Roman Empire, maritime commerce was disrupted for about 500 years.

After maritime activity was resumed in the Middle Ages, various disputes arose and laws were formulated to deal with them. Gradually, the laws of the sea were compiled; among the best-known collections of early maritime law are the Laws of Oleron and the Black Book of the Admiralty, an English compilation prepared during the 14th and 15th centuries. Special courts were set up in some countries to administer sea laws, for example, the British courts of the admiralty, still in use today.

III

The Scope of Maritime Law

Liability for common-law wrongs is enforced by maritime law. Maritime torts include all illegal acts or direct injuries arising in connection with commerce and navigation occurring on navigable waters, including negligence and the wrongful taking of property. The law permits recovery only for actual damages. Maritime law also recognizes and enforces contracts and awards damages for failure to fulfil them. The British admiralty courts have acquired jurisdiction by statute over crimes committed on the high seas outside the territorial waters of the United Kingdom.

Parties involved in a maritime venture where cargo or other property is lost, for example, if it had to be thrown overboard to keep a ship afloat during a storm, can appeal to the principles of general average; the doctrines pertaining to general average are among the most important in maritime law.

IV

International Ocean Law

After World War II, the International Law Commission (see International Law) was asked to consider codifying the existing laws relating to the oceans. The commission began its work in 1949 and prepared four draft conventions, which were adopted at the first UN Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS I) in 1958. These were the Convention on the Territorial Sea and Contiguous Zone; the Convention on the High Seas; the Convention on Fishing and Conservation of the Living Resources of the High Seas; and the Convention on the Continental Shelf.

Over 160 nations took part in the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III, from 1973 to 1982), which tackled the issues raised at previous conferences. It was another 21 years before the convention came into force, on November 14, 1994, one year after ratification by the 60th state.

UNCLOS III consolidated into one treaty customary international law for the uses of the oceans and at the same time introduced new legal concepts and regimes. The treaty is made up of 320 articles and 9 annexes, with the definition of maritime zones a key issue: the territorial sea, contiguous zone, exclusive economic zone, continental shelf, high seas, international sea-bed area, and archipelagic waters. The convention also provided for the passage of ships, protection of the marine environment, freedom of scientific research, and exploitation of resources.

In the early 21st century maritime security was the main focus. On July 1, 2004, a comprehensive security regime for international shipping came into force, administered by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). The mandatory security measures of the code included amendments to the 1974 Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS), the most extensive being the International Ship and Port Facility Security Code (ISPS Code). The code applies to port facilities, owners of ships larger than 500 tonnes, and the companies that unload them; 147 governments signed up to it. The mandatory section of the ISPS code contains detailed security requirements for governments, port authorities, and shipping companies. A non-mandatory section contains guidelines on how to meet these requirements. One such requirement is that large ships have security officers, alarm systems, automatic identification systems, and methods of verifying the identification of people boarding.

The prevention of marine pollution is also subject to specific international treaties and conventions. The most important for ships is the IMO International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 1973 (modified by the Protocol of 1978). Accidental and operational oil pollution, air pollution, and pollution by chemicals, goods in packaged form, sewage, and garbage are included in the convention. A global structure for international cooperation on major incidents or threats of marine pollution is given in the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response, and Co-operation (OPRC, 1990). The IMO also has secretariat responsibilities for the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter (LDC, 1972), generally known as the London Convention (or the 1996 Protocol). This protocol deals with international environmental law and agreements reached such as the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal 1989.

See also International Maritime Organization; Seas, Freedom of the.