Limitation Convention Act

Introduction

This paper is based on a legal case study involving two ships: MV Anthony of British company, Lepidus Container Lines Ltd and MV Gallus of Philo Shipping Inc. of Panama City. As the situation of the case stands, both ships have collided while entering the English Channel resulting in death of two passengers aboard the MV Gallus and the damage of containers on MV Anthony. The master of the British ship holds the Compulsory Pilotage Exemption Certificate. Just before the collision, a junior member of the Panama ship crew was in charge because the actual captain of the ship was found heavily drunk. The collision, as the case scenario shows, was result of carelessness on part of MV Gallus thus the in charge of the ship at the time of collision is to be held liable for the incident.

Compulsory Pilotage Certificate

The Port of Southampton provides berthing and handling facilities for a large range of commercial operations. Accordingly, a variety of vessels regularly call at the Port, these include cruise, container, tankers, bulk, roll on /roll off, aggregates and military support vessels (www.admiraltylawguide.com).

A Vessel Traffic Services (VTS) system has been has been established by the Port to monitor and coordinate the safe movement of vessels throughout the Port's pilotage area.

The Port's VTS system covers the approaches to the Dockyard Port of Portsmouth and the Port of Cowes. By agreement with the Queen's Harbour Master (QHM) Portsmouth, Southampton VTS provides VTS information to shipping in QHM's Statutory Harbour Area. A Harbour Authority's liability is governed by section 191 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995, and by section 22 of the Pilotage Act 1987 (www.admiraltylawguide.com). Neither entitles a person to limit their liability if it is proved that the loss resulted from their personal acts or omission, committed with the intent to cause such a loss, or recklessly and with the knowledge that such loss would probably be the result.

There is a limitation of liability in the charge of pilot's negligence. Currently this is £1000 plus the pilotage fee for the voyage in question (www.ousepilots.com). For a CHA the amount is £1000 multiplied by the number of Pilots authorised for that district. With the exception of Class C vessels, the owner or operator of every ship whose Master or First Mate holds a Pilotage Exemption Certificate for any part of the Pilotage Area shall, for each occasion on which such Master or First Mate may navigate his ship within any part of the Pilotage Area to which the certificate applies, in circumstances in which the employment of a pilot would otherwise be compulsory, pay to ABP one-quarter of the pilotage dues (pilotage rates and boarding and landing rates) which would have been payable in respect of the ship if the Master or First Mate had employed a Pilot but such payments shall be limited to the first eighty complete movements of the ship in the Pilotage Area in any one calendar year (www.southwalesports.co.uk).

The conditions of Compulsory Pilotage Certificate include:

(1) Subject to ...