A recent judgment by the Spanish Supreme Court, dated 23rd November 2016, has ruled that Law 3/2004 (dated 29th December 2004) against late payment in commercial operations, as amended by Law 15/2010 of 5th July and Law 11/2013 of 26th July, establishes a maximum period of 60 days for payment in commercial operations. After such period, interests, as established in the Law, inevitably accrue. Read more
The Official Journal of the European Union has published on 4th January 2014 the Commission implementing Regulation (EU) 2017/1 of 3rd January on procedures for watercraft identification under Directive 2013/53/EU on recreational craft and personal watercraft.
Its purpose is to ensure a better implementation of the coding systems required for watercraft identification and will enter into force on 24th January 2017.
One of the major problems shipowners might face is the presence of stowaways on board of their vessel. And what we mean by problem it is not only economy and security-wise but also, and above all, in terms of “human factor” involved in this situation.
On the one hand, we have the Master and the crew who are being affected by the sudden intrusion of one or several strangers in their work place and the place of their communal living and who, additionally, become fully responsible for the stowaways’ life situation. Read more
On 8th September 2016, Finland ratified the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ship’s Ballast Water and Sediments, also known as the Ballast Water Management Convention (BWM Convention). With this ratification, the criteria established in article 18 of the Convention for the entry into force have been met, triggering the twelve month period for its application. Read more
Article 1911 of the Spanish Civil Code establishes the general principle that debtors will be held accountable for their liabilities with all their present and future assets. Limitation of liability is an exceptional figure under Spanish law. For this reason, Spanish Courts are always reluctant to accept the limitation of liability principles established in international conventions in matters of transport and seek a way to avoid such limitation of liability. Read more
Regulation (EC) 785/2004 on insurance requirements for air carriers and aircraft operators establishes that the minimum insurance cover for liability in respect of passengers shall be 250,000 SDR.
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Following a request from Clients, we hereby summarize the issues that we consider most relevant of the judgment issued by the Spanish Supreme Court num. 241/2015 dated 6th May and that affect recreational crafts.
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By judgment dated 21st July 2016, the Spanish Constitutional Court has declared null and void the judicial taxes regulated by Law 10/2012 of 20th November. The Court considers that whilst judicial taxes are not necessarily unconstitutional, those established by Law 10/2012 are disproportionate and thus breach the right to a due process. Read more
On the 30th of June of 2016 the Spanish Official Gazette (number 157) published a Resolution dated 15th June 2016 issued by the General Directorate of the Merchant Navy (GDMN), regarding the verification of the gross mass (VGM) of containers, and that partially amends the previous Resolution of the GDMN dated 31st May 2016 (https://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2016/06/30/). This Resolution differs slightly from the Resolution dated 31st May 2016 in sections 2, 5, 10, 11 13 and in its Annex. Read more
Although unwanted, it is an every-day fact to receive news from carriers who suffered theft or robbery while having the truck fully loaded with goods and in transit according to the agreed contract of carriage. In fact, there are geographical areas which are particularly problematic in this regard on both levels, national and international. The liability system for road carriers is the same in international carriage (CMR Convention, arts. 17-29) as in national carriage in Spain (Law 15/2009 from 9th of November – LCT, arts. 46-63). The carrier is not only accountable for damages or late delivery of the entrusted cargo but also for losses caused by a robbery or any other reason. Read more