Maritime Jurisdiction and Admiralty Law in India

Including Comprehensive Commentary on Maritime Liens, Maritime Torts, Injury, Damages, Claims, Charter-parties, Mortgages, Maritime safety, Anti-piracy Actions, etc
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Description
Over the course of five decades of legal practice as a lawyer in the Orissa High Court and the Supreme Court of India, my father, Shri Samareshwar Mahanty, was particularly fascinated with the subject of admiralty law. He filed his first admiralty suit in an Indian High Court in the year 1983 and, since then, has handled several complex matters relating to mercantile marine and admiralty law in High Courts and the Supreme Court of India. Throughout the course of his professional career in law, he found very limited legal literature that comprehensively dealt with admiralty jurisdiction in India - and those that were available dealt with admiralty law and jurisdiction in relation to India were not thorough. Consequently, the entire legal fraternity experienced considerable difficulties in dealing with admiralty cases and lawyers had to largely rely on adapting their arguments from first principles, basis their researches in English maritime and admiralty laws, as well as laws of other countries such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Singapore.
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Contents
CHAPTER I :    NATURE OF ADMIRALTY LAW
A    Admiralty Law is Municipal Law Having International Aspects
B    Admiralty Law Constitute an Independent Legal System in the World - The Common
      Law of the Sea
C    Admiralty Law as a Part of the Law Merchant
D    Admiralty Law in Relation to Public and Private International Law
E    Admiralty Law in Relation to Common Law and Civil Law
F    Sources of Maritime Law and Admiralty Law
CHAPTER II :    HISTORY OF ADMIRALTY LAW
A    In England
B    In India
CHAPTER III :    CONTENT AND SCOPE OF ADMIRALTY JURISDICTION
•    Actions in rem and Actions in personam
•    Action in rem
         •    Juridical Personality of the Ship
         •    Maritime Lien
                    •    Action against only the offending ship or against the property in question
                    •    Action against either the offending ship or "sister ship"
         •    Arrest of Ships and Modern Alternatives to Arrests
         •    Undertaking to Acknowledge Service or Provide Security
         •    Mareva Injunctions
         •    Extinction of Liens
•   Action in personam
•   Summary of the Present Statutory Position in India
•   The Yuri Maru, The Woron Case: Freezing of Admiralty Law
•   The Case of M.V. Elisabeth v. Harwan Investment and Trading (Pvt.) Ltd.: Thawing
      of Admiralty Law
•   Territorial Jurisdiction of Admiralty Courts in England
•  Territorial Jurisdiction of Admiralty Courts in India
•  Bar to Exercise of Admiralty Jurisdiction
        •   Bar in cases of foreign State ownership of ships
        •   Bar in cases of proceedings against the Government
        •   Bar in collision cases
        •   Bar in the cases of arbitration     
•  Stay of Admiralty Proceedings
(a)  Foreign jurisdiction clauses   
(b)  The plea of Us alibi pendens
(c)  Forum non conveniens
CHAPTER IV:  MARITIME CLAIMS AND LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
•  Limitation of Liability
•  Maritime Claims
•  Proprietary Maritime Claims
   (a)  Claim to possession or ownership of a ship
   (b)  Questions arising between co-owners of a ship
   (c)  Claim in respect of mortgages and charges
   (d)  Forfeiture, Condemnation and Restoration of Ship or Goods
•   General Maritime Claims
        •   Claims for Loss of or Damage to Cargo; Agreements Relating to Carriage or Hire
        •   Damage Done by or to a Ship
        •   Loss of Life or Personal Injury
        •   Salvage
        •   Towage
        •   Pilotage
•  Supplies, Repairs and Dock Charges
(a)  Supplies
(b)  Construction, Repair or Equipment and Dock Charges or Dues 
•  Wages And Disbursements
    (a)  Wages
    (b)  Disbursements
•  General Average
•  Bottomry
•  Droits of Admiralty
•  Ranking of Liens
CHAPTER V:    ADMIRALTY LAW AND THE CONSTITUTION
CHAPTER VI:    MARITIME SAFETY AND ANTI-PIRACY ACTIONS
A:  Customary International Law on Piracy - As it has been
B:  Law-making International Conventions Relating to Piracy
C:  Piracy and Universal Jurisdiction
       •   Conclusions and Recommendations
D:  Towards a Better International Maritime Security Investment Fund
       •   The International Maritime Security Trust (IMST) Fund
       •   The International Search and Rescue (SAR) Fund
       •   The IMO Malacca and Singapore Straits Trust Fund
       •   The IMO Djibouti Code of Conduct Trust Fund
       •   Need for a More Robust and Effective International Maritime Security Trust Fund
       •   Conclusion
       •   References
APPENDIX A.—The Admiralty Court Act, 1840
APPENDIX B.—The Admiralty Court Act, 1861
APPENDIX C.—Extracts from the Supreme Court Act, 1981 (U.K.)
APPENDIX D.—The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act, 1890
APPENDIX E.—Provisions of Letters-patent and Other Instruments Relating to Admiralty Jurisdiction
APPENDIX F— Draft Admiralty Act of the Law Commission of India (Annexure VIII of Its Report)
APPENDIX G— The Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017
                           A Comparative Commentary on the Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of
                           Maritime Claims) Act, 2017 vis-a-vis the Admiralty Bill, 2005
APPENDIX H.—The Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 Subject Index
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Author Details
Samareshwar Mahanty is M.A., LL.B. Advocate
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