Lloyd's Maritime Law Newsletter

Admiralty practice - Collision actions - Important questions of Admiralty practice and procedure - Court of Appeal considering principles applicable to extension of time for serving proceedings in rem and in personam

International law - Registration and enforcement of foreign judgment - Judgment creditor obtaining judgment in Venezuela against "The International Fund for Compensation for Oil Pollution Damage" - Judgment registered in England as a judgment of the High Court - Whether judgment related to The International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund 1992 - Immunity - Whether registration order should be set aside

Admiralty practice - Cargo claim - Claimants' solicitor intending to issue in rem claim form but mistakenly using form for in personam claim - Claimants failing to serve claim form within four-month period - Claimants amending claim form to read as if it were an in rem claim - Whether claim time-barred - Whether claimants entitled to order remedying "error of procedure" - CPR 3.10

Demurrage – Carriage of bentonite in bulk – Whether delay in discharging caused by fault of owners – Whether delay caused by ingress of water – Whether shifting of berth at behest of port authority constituted a force majeure event – Whether charterers liable for demurrage

Practice – Anti-suit injunction – Whether delay prevents grant of injunction

Charterparty – Vessel voyage-chartered by disponent owners – Charterers paying freight on signing bills of lading – Head owners preventing vessel from leaving loadport until disponent owners supplied bunkers and paid discharge port disbursements pursuant to head charterparty – Charterers agreeing to supply bunkers and settle discharge port disbursements – Charterers seeking to recover costs from disponent owners – Whether charterers’ payments a “voluntary act” on basis that cargo interests could have enforced rights against head owners under bill of lading contract

Charterparty – Value of bunkers on delivery – Balance of account – Costs