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BILLS OF LADING. Sir Richard Aikens, Lord Justice of Appeal, Hon Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge, Richard Lord QC and Michael Bools, Barrister. Informa, London (2008) lix and 387 pp, plus 19 pp Index. Hardback £370.
SCRUTTON ON CHARTERPARTIES (21st Edition). Edited by Stewart C. Boyd CBE QC and others. Sweet & Maxwell, London (2008) cxxv and 429 pp, plus 92 pp appendices and 18 pp. Hardback £250.
It would be tempting to compare these two books as Brick Court Chambers’ and Essex Court Chambers’ contributions to the dry shipping law industry, the latter with a little help from Fountain Court. However, whilst there are many similarities between the two books, particularly in content, they have very different purposes and different histories. Scrutton is now in its 21st edition and has a record of being frequently cited by the courts. Its authority derives from this and so the editors cannot significantly modify its contents. Lord Mustill, in the preface to the 20th edition, at vii, explained:
“It is not, and was never intended to be, a work of discursive or speculative scholarship. The author’s aims were more circumscribed, and perhaps because of this more lastingly achieved. He set out to state the law as it was, not as it might become, for ready access and comprehension by those in the business of merchant shipping and their advisors. This remains the purpose of the book.”
Bills of Lading is a first edition and thus the authors have a free hand. They can be as discursive or controversial as they please without worrying that they are trampling on a legacy. Indeed, the preface, at vii, states that the book:
“is aimed primarily at legal practitioners and others at the ‘sharp end’ of legal problems arising in connection with bills of lading. It attempts to provide practical answers to real questions, as well as an analysis of the underlying legal principles. We have not shrunk from comment or criticism of decisions or statutory provisions if we think it justified.”
Starting then with Scrutton, the last edition was criticized (F M B Reynolds (1997) 113 LQR 150 and J Chambers [1998] LMCLQ 293) for having a significant gap between editions. It seems this criticism was ignored, as the gap remains the same 12 years. This is regrettable. In view of the impending arrival of the Rome I Regulation, Art 200 on Choice of Law will very soon be out of date and yet the Article will not, it seems, be updated until 2020.
In terms of the layout of the book, a few things have been altered. The present edition of Scrutton, like all before it, is arranged in an Article-by-Article system. The Articles are not in the format of rules but rather in the format of sub-headings. It may be questioned whether this approach should be taken to such extravagant lengths as it has been in the new edition. The table of cases, and index,
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