Maritime Law › Transportation Law

FMC Approves Proposed Rewrite of OTI Regulations

Today, the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) voted 3-2 to move forward with reforming the Ocean Transportation Intermediaries (OTI) rules, regulating U.S.- and foreign-based non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCC)...more

Infrastructure Alert - April 17, 2013

Last week, President Obama released his FY2014 budget, outlining several proposals to fund new infrastructure programs. The budget proposes $40 billion for “Fix it First” projects to repair existing infrastructure, as well...more

Cuba Practice Update - April 11, 2013

Cuba Details Rules for Special Economic Zone - The Cuban government last week released details of customs reforms for a long-planned free trade industrial manufacturing and maritime shipping facility in the Mariel...more

Federal Maritime Commission Announces New Chairman Cordero

The U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) announced that Commissioner Mario Cordero will replace Commissioner Richard A. Lidinsky as Chairman, effective April 1, 2013. Lidinsky submitted his resignation as Chairman to...more

What is a Vessel?

The line between maritime and non-maritime jurisdiction continues to be redrawn. A recent case out of the Southern District of New York, Fireman’s Fund v Great American Insurance Company, 2013 U.S. Dist. 11114, held a dry...more

Federal Maritime Commission to Open Use of Liner Negotiated Rate Agreements to Foreign NVOCCs

The United States Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking under which foreign unlicensed Non-Vessel Operating Common Carriers (NVOCCs) will be allowed to register with the Commission and...more

Fourth Circuit Refuses to Pierce the Corporate Veil in Oil Spill Case

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has refused to enforce a judgment against an entity with ties to the judgment debtor, finding that the judgment creditor had not adequately pled an alter ego claim....more

Infrastructure Alert - February 13, 2013

President Obama called for increased infrastructure and transportation spending in last night’s State of the Union address, stressing the need to fix failing infrastructure first and utilizing public-private partnerships...more

Infrastructure Alert - January 29, 2013

The current International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) contract extension expires at the end of February 6. Carrier-paid container royalties remain the central issue in the negotiation. ...more

Supreme Ct. Adds Employment-Related Case To Schedule

The Supreme Court will soon hear a case involving a controversial Port of Los Angeles rule that would require trucking companies to hire their drivers as employees rather than independent contractors. The Court added American...more

FANE LOZMAN v. THE CITY OF RIVIERA BEACH, FLORIDA

U.S. Supreme Court Decision

The U.S. Supreme Court has now ruled that Lozman’s houseboat was a "floating home" and has ruled that his floating home is not a vessel. ...more

New FMC Commissioner Could Lead to Continuing Reforms of U.S. International Ocean Transportation System

On Tuesday, the United States Senate confirmed William P. Doyle, of Pennsylvania, to be a Federal Maritime Commissioner for the term expiring June 30, 2013. Commissioner Doyle joins Chairman Richard A. Lidinsky, Jr., Michael...more

The Delightfully Brief, Pithy and Wholly Idiosyncratic Video Newsletter - January 2013, Vol. 1, Edition 1

A Billion Here or There - Now that the President has another four years and the budget chasm is before the country. The so-called fiscal cliff comes. Of the many ways to save money, the Congress has chosen the meat...more

Infrastructure Alert - January 3, 2013

The 112th Congress adjourned before voting on any Hurricane Sandy relief bill. Although the Senate passed a $60.4 billion relief bill, the House did not hold a vote on it nor the Republican-backed alternative $27 billion...more

Florida Port Strike May Not Happen As Negotiations Continue Into 2013: News Release of the Week

Florida's economy needs its active and efficient ports and while on one hand, there's construction underway to make Port Miami big enough to deal with the increased traffic coming from the Panama Canal expansion, on the other...more

ILA-USMX Contract Extended 30 Days

The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) agreed on a 30-day extension of the current coast-wide master contract, temporarily shielding East and Gulf Coast ports from...more

Time charters. Condition of vessel on redelivery.

Duration of contractual service of the vessel under time charter confined between the terms of the place or time, or both, at which the vessel is redelivered, regardless of vessel’s condition....more

Time charters. Place of redelivery.

Place of redelivery together with the time of redelivery are the two terms which define the extent of contractual service. When both terms expressly stipulated in time charter, failure of charterers to comply with either of...more

Time charters. Redelivery date.

Under the time-charter contract the vessel is delivered by the owners to the charterers for their commercial use within stipulated period of time. At the end of this time, subject to any express provision contained in the...more

Time Charter. Hire.

Payment of hire is a primary obligation of the charterer under the terms of time charter contract. Payment of hire is an absolute obligation and is not excused by accident or inadvertence....more

Time Charter. Redelivery.

There is no possessory rights over the vessel vested in time charterers, therefore redelivery of vessel takes effect when the master is no longer under the charterer's orders but must consider himself under the orders of the...more

Time Charter. Description of the vessel

Description of the vessel, naturally, is very important to both sides of charterparty contract, because it outlines particulars and characteristics of the subject-matter of contract. Therefore charterers have a right to...more

Recent Case Law - Shipping

Minerva Navigation Inc v Oceana Shipping AG (The Athena) [2012] EWHC 3608 (Comm) (13 December 2012) Shipping – Timecharter – NYPE Amended NYPE 1946 cl.15 – Whether the Vessel is off-hire for a particular period merely...more

Time Charter. Off-hire

When the owners let their vessel to the time charterers in consideration of the payment of hire the later entitled to the use of the vessel during contracted period of time. Express provision for punctual advanced payment of...more

Time Charter. Delivery and Duration

Delivery under timecharter usually takes place at designed place or range and within certain time interval, also called laycan. An owner delivers a ship to a time charterer … by placing her at the charterers’ disposal and...more