A note from the Editors of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, Sarah Gahlen and María Belén Espiñeira
Released on Feb 27, 2026
A note from the Co-Chairs of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, Patrick Holloway and Marco Remiorz.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
The war in Ukraine has dramatically changed the country’s logistics map. It has: destroyed old routes; called into question the reliability of the infrastructure; forced businesses to look for new models of work, in some cases to build supply chains from scratch; and meant constantly having a plan B, C, and so on, ready. Shipping logistics, which before the full-scale invasion was a key to agricultural and metallurgy exports, have now plunged into a deep crisis due to the suspension of shipping in 2022. Today, when, thanks to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ukrainian ports are working again, it is still undergoing a painful but necessary process of transformation.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
An interview with Diego de San Simón, Website Officer of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee
Released on Feb 27, 2026
As a landlocked jurisdiction, Kazakhstan’s foreign trade and transit carriage is structurally corridor-based and typically executed through multimodal chains: rail and road legs, terminal handling, and – where relevant – a maritime segment in the Caspian basin. In that operating reality, limitation of liability rarely turns on a single ‘carriage’ or a single document. Instead, it turns on: (1) where the loss occurred (stage identification); (2) who held custody and in what capacity; and (3) how handovers were documented across modal interfaces.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
As the maritime sector faces unique risks, having clear and reliable insurance arrangements is essential. Hull and Machinery (H&M) policies play a key role, protecting shipowners against physical damage to vessels and often covering costs linked to salvage operations and general average.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
In recent years, Argentina’s maritime and land transport industries have faced extraordinary challenges that have significantly disrupted operations. These challenges include natural events such as the low water levels on the Paraná River, widespread strikes and lockouts led by powerful trade unions, and logistical issues stemming from armed robberies and truck hijackings. Together, these factors have created unprecedented difficulties for carriers, shippers, logistics operators, and underwriters alike.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
Imagine that a foreign client contacts your firm to inform you that they have supplied bunkers to a certain vessel in a foreign port, duly delivered and registered through a Bunker Delivery Note signed and stamped by the vessel’s chief engineer, but remain unpaid.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has long been a jurisdiction where the law said one thing about maritime limitation of liability, but practice often delivered another. That gap is narrowing. With the advent of the new UAE maritime law in 2024, the UAE appears poised to move from a system which recognised limitation in theory to one that can operationalise it in practice, most notably by enabling the constitution of limitation funds before the courts.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
The United Republic of Tanzania is a sovereign state that was founded in 1964 by the Union of two independent states, Tanganyika and Zanzibar. Before the Union, Zanzibar was recognised as the People’s Republic of Zanzibar and Tanganyika as the Republic of Tanganyika.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
Dutch law on limitation of maritime claims is primarily based on international conventions, supplemented by provisions in the Dutch Civil Code (Burgerlijk Wetboek, BW) and the Dutch Code of Civil Procedure (Wetboek van Burgerlijke Rechtsvordering, Rv).
Released on Feb 27, 2026
One of the enduring challenges in maritime dispute resolution is ensuring that a successful claimant is able to enforce a judgment or arbitral award once liability has been established. The transnational nature of shipping operations, coupled with the widespread use of single-purpose ship-owning companies and flags of convenience, often leaves claimants exposed to the risk of pursuing costly proceedings only to obtain a hollow judgment.
Released on Feb 27, 2026
A note from the Editors of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, Müge Anber-Kontakis and Maria Belen Espineira
Released on Sep 1, 2025
A note from the Co-Chairs of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, Patrick Holloway and Marco Remiorz.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
An interview with Anna Mestre, Vice Chair of the Land Transport Subcommittee of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
The carriage of goods by sea in Argentina is governed by a dual legal framework. Because both instruments govern the same subject matter, the Hague Rules apply to international cases, whereas the Argentine Shipping Act regulates domestic cases.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
Brazil is not a party to the key international convention on limitation of liability for shipowners, the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims 1976 (the 'LLMC'), as amended by the 1996 Protocol. It is also not a party to the 1996 International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution Damage (the 'CLC').
Released on Sep 1, 2025
In Canada, the Marine Liability Act (MLA) is the main source of legislation that limits damages in the maritime context. The MLA incorporates various international conventions into law and adds some uniquely Canadian features.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
China's legal system on limitation of liability is mainly based on the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims, 1976, and, in terms of its domestic law, it can be mainly divided into the following four aspects.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
Up until 2005, Cyprus applied the provisions of the United Kingdom Merchant Shipping Act 1894, section 503, with regards to limitation of liability for shipowners. Under the provisions of this section, shipowners were permitted to limit their liability based on the gross tonnage of the ship without deduction on account of the engine room.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
The package limitation for goods being shipped out of India is to be found in the Carriage of Goods by Sea Act, 1925 ('COGSA'), which incorporates the Hague Rules, 1924. As per Article IV (5) of the Schedule to the Act, the limitation is an amount not exceeding 666.67 special drawing rights per package or unit or two special drawing rights per kilogram of gross weight of the goods lost or damaged, whichever is higher.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
Japan has ratified the Protocol of 1996 to amend the Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims 1976. This has been reflected in the domestic Act on Limitation of Liability of Shipowners (the 'Act'). The new limitation came into effect in June 2015. In addition, the Act on Liability for Oil Pollution Damage provides for the limitation of liability of the owners of tankers in the event of tanker oil pollution.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
In every corporate rescue mechanism (CRM) under the Companies Act 2016, almost invariably, a restraining order is granted, which imposes a moratorium on all legal proceedings against the company, except with the leave of the court. This is to give the financially distressed company time and opportunity to rehabilitate and extricate itself from financial difficulties.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
The Nigerian legal system is fundamentally rooted in the English Common Law tradition, a legacy of the country's colonial history. Consequently, Nigerian maritime law has evolved under the substantial influence of English Admiralty Law, supplemented by international maritime conventions.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
In the modern era of maritime commerce, the doctrine of limitation of liability remains a cornerstone of shipping law. It reflects a pragmatic compromise between the interests of shipowners and claimants, seeking to balance commercial risk, ensure insurability and encourage trade.
Released on Sep 1, 2025
On 14 July 2012, while en route from Charleston, South Carolina to Antwerp, Belgium, an explosion and subsequent fire occurred in cargo hold number 4 of the container ship 'MSC Flaminia' (the 'Vessel'). This tragic incident resulted in loss of life and substantial financial losses for the owners and their insurers.
Released on Aug 31, 2025
A note from the Co-Chairs of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, Ulla von Weissenberg and Henrik Hagberg.
Released on Aug 19, 2024
Note from the Editors of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee, Jim Bercaw and Müge Anber-Kontakis.
Released on Aug 19, 2024
An interview with Tom Belknap, Co-Vice Chair of the IBA Maritime and Transport Law Committee and a partner at Blank Rome, New York.
Released on Aug 19, 2024
On 1 January 2024, shipping was included into the existing Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) regulation – also known as the ‘cap and trade’ system. This article provides an overview of the most important aspects and insight into how the regulation will be administered in Denmark.
Released on Aug 19, 2024