Contemporary Developments in Global Limitation of Liability of Shipowners and Others

Abstract

The long established right to limit liability in relation to maritime claims is in the modern law principally governed by the 1976 Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims. This has not established a settled legal position for questions consistently arise about the application of the Convention. In this contribution recent cases in the UK and Hong Kong relating to persons entitled to limit, limitable claims and loss of the right to limit are analysed. Also analysed is the procedural right to institute limitation proceedings and the conflict of conventions issues that may arise. There is a final comment on state practice expanding the right to limit by national legislation on the basis of the scheme in the 1976 Convention.

Keywords

• limitation of liability for maritime claims convention 1976
• persons entitled to limit
• limitable claims
• loss of right to limit
• limitation proceedings
• national law
• expanding the right to limit