Italy - Time Bars
19/01/2017
Under Italian law, limitation periods depend on the type of claim. For the purpose of the time bars examined in this article, the main statutes are the Civil Code and the Code of Navigation. Time bars are distinguished between prescrizione and decadenza: both cannot be extended or shortened by agreement between the parties, but prescrizione can be protected by a notice of claim which will make a fresh time bar period start to run, whilst decadenza can be avoided only by court action or any other act required by the law or by the contract.
Cyprus - Time Bars
18/01/2017
The Limitation of Actionable Rights Law of 2012 (basic Law) along with any amendments, is the Law that regulates the maximum period for claim-filing (legal action) in Cyprus Courts (exclusively within the jurisdiction of the Republic of Cyprus).
Egypt - Time Bars
18/01/2017
Understand Egypt's legal time bars
Finland - Time Bars
18/01/2017
According to the general principle of law debts shall be time bared if the creditor does not demand settlement within a reasonable time. Rules to shorten the limitation periods are implemented in Finnish legislation. The general law on time bar applicable to debts and other obligations are laid down in law 2003/728 Act on Limitations on debts. These general rules are applicable to all sorts of obligations (money, goods, services, damages, indemnities etc.) but do only apply if no special regulations on time bar are stipulated elsewhere in the legislation.
France - Time Bars
18/01/2017
Colombia - Time Bars
18/01/2017
Navigate Colombian legal timelines effectively
Canada - Time Bars
17/01/2017
Canada is a federal state, in which law-making powers of the central (federal) Parliament and of each of the ten provinces are exclusive and respectively sovereign, and are assigned to one or other of the levels of government essentially according to subject-matter. Most particularly, the power to make laws in relation to "navigation and shipping" is assigned exclusively to the federal Parliament, and scope of this power is interpreted to include matters of contract, tort and agency "integrally connected with maritime matters ... in the modern context of commerce and shipping".
Belgium - Time Bars
17/01/2017
Time Bars under Belgian civil law and Belgian maritime law -
China - Time Bars
17/01/2017
The General Principles of Civil Law of China provides that a general 2-year time bar is applicable for civil claims (Art. 135, The General Principles of Civil Law). The time bar starts counting from the day on which the claimant knows or ought to know that his right is infringed (Art. 137, The General Principles of Civil Law). Under no circumstance should a People's Court support a claim which has exceeded 20 years from the date when the right is infringed.
A few Members have yet to apply for maritime labour convention certificates, the process of applying for certificates can be found here
Argentina - Time Bars
16/01/2017
In Argentina all the matters concerning the navigation and trade by water are governed, mainly, by Argentinian Maritime Law (Nº 20,094). Where an issue it is not expressly contemplated therein - and it cannot be solved by analogy - the general law applies. This context entails some degree of ambiguity which affects, also, some of the time bars.
Members will recall that substantial increases in the liability limits set by the 1976 London Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims (LLMC) as amended by the 1996 LLMC Protocol, were agreed by the IMO Legal Committee in 2012.
In 2016, the SOLAS convention on enclosed space entry was amended requiring all ships to carry portable atmosphere testing equipment on board. The regulation aimed at protecting seafarers who need to enter enclosed spaces entered into force on 1st July 2016.
Ensuring safety during lifeboat drills
16/09/2016
The potential dangers of lifeboat drills are in the news once again this week, following an incident during a lifeboat drill, which has left one crew member dead, and four injured.
PEME Advice: Dehydration
15/09/2016
Over the last 12 months, several cases of illness on Members' ships indicate possible dehydration in the underlying health of the crew.
Intricacies of the Philippine Legal System
05/09/2016
The Philippines contributes around a third of the world's 1.2 million seafarers, so it is unsurprising that the People Claims team deal with a high number of illness and injury cases among Filipino crew.
In accordance with attached the recent Shenzhen government notification, all merchant ships are required to burn low sulphur bunkers (sulphur contents less than or equal to 0.5%) when calling the port of Shenzhen from 1st October 2016.
Stay informed on China's Oil Pollution Compensation Fund with updates on claims procedures and guidelines
Health Focus: Mental Health
26/08/2016
The PEME team together with their accredited clinics provide advice and information on a range of illnesses affecting crew.
Stay informed on the USCG's Alternate Management Systems (AMS) program