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ARTICLE · 18 MAY 2009

The Rotterdam Rules: New Liabilities For Port Operators

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A new international convention making ports and terminal operators subject to an onerous compulsory liability regime has been approved by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and will soon be ready for adoption by governments.

United KingdomTransport

Article by Craig Neame and Ben Atkinson

Convention overview

A new international convention making ports and terminal operators subject to an onerous compulsory liability regime has been approved by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) and will soon be ready for adoption by governments.

The convention ("Convention on Contracts for the International Carriage of Goods Wholly or Partly by Sea"), will probably be referred to in industry circles as the "Rotterdam Rules" in recognition of the signing ceremony which will take place in September 2009 in Rotterdam.

Primarily designed to govern the liability of carriers providing "wet multimodal transportation", the convention also applies to cargo and delay claims brought by shipping lines against terminal operators acting as sub-contractors.

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