The Carrier’s Duties and Liability under the Carriage of Goods by Sea: Common Law, International Conventions and the 1972 Jordanian Maritime Trade Act Compared

Dr. Husam Botosh

Kuwait International Law School Journal - Volume 5 - Issue 1 - Ser. No. 17 - Jumada Al-Akhirah 1438 - March 2017

Abstract

This paper deals with the carrier’s duties and liability under laws concerning the carriage of goods by sea. The common law, the Hague and the Hague-Visby Rules, the Hamburg Rules as well as the Rotterdam Rules will all be reviewed. These conventions will be analysed and compared alongside the Jordanian Maritime Trade Act 1972 (JMTA). Due to the predominance of English law on the matter, this will be utilised as a basis on which an analysis will take place by exploring relevant aspects of the common law. It is essential at this stage to reinforce that the main focus of the paper will be specifically looking at the carrier’s duties and liability. Whilst conducting the comparative analysis, less importance will be allocated to the Hamburg Rules compared to the others, namely because the Hamburg Rules were not signed by numerous countries compared to the other conventions. Hence, it is seen as less significant and this can be clearly seen through Jurisprudence. This paper consists of four sections. Section one deals with the carrier’s definition. Section two is allocated for the duties of carrier. Exclusion from liability is dealt with in Section three. Section four concludes the paper.

Key words: Maritime Law, Carrier’s Duties and Liability, Carriage of Goods by Sea, the Hamburg Rules, the Rotterdam Rules, Jordan Maritime Trade Act 1972