Introduction:
Cargo claims are a feature of everyday life for Clubs and shipping lawyers alike. Often, however, the settlement of such cargo claims is only the start of the dispute; the really tricky issues arise when subsequently seeking to allocate responsibility for such claims under the charter party.
The well-known EEMS SOLAR case has again put the spotlight on this area, and the seminar will focus on this case together with others experienced by the West of England P&I Club and by Brookes Bell. The seminar will look at the factors that contributed to the cargo damage and the legal and evidential issues that arose when seeking to allocate responsibility under the terms of the charter party.Issues to be discussed:
– different stowage arrangements
the physical losses that can be caused by bad stowage
– the legal intricacies of establishing which party is liable under the B/L and any C/P: was the stow collapse due to bad lashing by stevedores or by the vessel’s faulty twistlocks? Does the master’s/crew’s intervention during loading shift the blame onto the vessel owners?; Who takes the blame if both vessel/crew and charterer/stevedore factors play a part in causing the damage?