The Law on Charterparties

Module overview

This module introduces you to the law governing charterparties which are maritime contracts between shipowners and charterers for the hire of a ship for the carriage of cargo (or passengers) and as such form a critical part of the law governing the carriage of goods by sea. Charterparties may be voyage charters, time charters or bareboat/demise charters, and often go hand in hand with bills of lading, which in turn may import the application of the Hague-Visby Rules to the charterparties by paramount clauses. The study of this module involves an application of general principles of English (contract) law to the specific context of charterparties.

Aims and Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

Analyse relevant legal materials, including statutes, case law and standard charterparty clauses.
Appraise and criticise existing debates in charterparties law, using appropriate legal research skills.
Locate and analyse relevant legal and other primary and secondary source materials including standard contracts.
Identify and explain the main internationally-accepted principles underpinning the law relating to charterparties.
Apply the legal principles, with appropriate legal authorities, in the solution of complex problems.

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

Think critically, develop coherent arguments in writing.
Display clarity and objectivity in written discussion demonstrating an awareness of issue of academic integrity.
Identify and analyse key issues.
Distinguish relevant from irrelevant materials.

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

The legal principles governing time, voyage and bareboat charterparties.
The commercial and public policies underlying legal principles on charterparties and areas of current debate and development.

Learning and Teaching

Teaching and learning methods

This module is taught through lectures (8x2hours) and seminars (3x2hours). Lectures will introduce the principles and structure of the subject. You are expected to provide the main input to the seminars where the principles introduced in the lectures are applied to hypothetical scenarios. The most important part of learning is your own independent study. This will, however, be closely guided, and firmly tied into the lectures, seminars and assessment. In the seminars you will have the opportunity to present arguments orally to a group of peers and defend your position under challenge.

Study time
Type	Hours
Tutorial	6
Independent Study	128
Lecture	16
Total study time	150

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Sir Bernard Eder; David Foxton; Steven Berry; Christopher Smith; Professor Howard Bennett (2019). Scrutton on Charterparties and Bills of Lading. Sweet & Maxwell.

Mark Davis (2005). Bareboat Charters. Informa Law from Routledge.

John Wilson (2010). Carriage of Goods by Sea. Pearson Longman.

Julian Cooke, Andrew Taylor, John D. Kimball, David Martowski, LeRoy Lambert (2014). Voyage Charters. Informa Law from Routledge.

Terence Coghlin, Andrew W. Baker, Julian Kenny, John D. Kimball, Tom Belknap (2014). Time Charters. Informa Law from Routledge.

Assessment

Formative

This is how we’ll give you feedback as you are learning. It is not a formal test or exam.

Formative Assessment

Assessment Type: Formative
Feedback:
Final Assessment: No
Group Work: No

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Examination	100%

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Examination	100%

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Examination	100%

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External