Qatar is not a signatory to the Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law relating to Bills of Lading, done in Brussels on 25 August 1924 (the Hague Rules), nor the Protocol amending the Brussels Convention, done in Brussels on 23rd February 1968 (the Hague-Visby Rules). Likewise it is not a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Carriage of Goods by Sea, being Annex I of the Final Act of the United Nations Conference on the Carriage of Goods by Sea done in Hamburg on 31st March 1978 (the Hamburg Rules).
The maritime law in Qatar is primarily contained in Law No. 15 of 1980 Maritime Law (the "Maritime Law") which was issued on 29th October 1980 and came into force from the date of its publication in Gazette No. 12 of 1980.
The Maritime Law is divided into a number of Sections as follows:
Chapter 1 - The Ship
Chapter 2 - Persons of the Ship
Chapter 3 - Ship Exploitation (use)
Chapter 4 - Maritime Accidents
Chapter 5 - Marine Insurance
Put simply, Chapter 1 deals with ownership, mortgages and arrest, Chapter 2 deals with employment of the Captain and crew, Chapter 3 deals with leases (herein after called "charterparties") and contracts of carriage, Chapter 4 deals with collisions and towage and Chapter 5 deals with insurance both in respect to Hull and Machinery and cargo. This article will give a brief overview of some of the pertinent provisions within the Maritime Law.
Ship Mortgage
Article 26 of the Maritime Law authorizes the mortgage of a ship provided it is evidenced by an official contract. The mortgage is required to be registered at the Ship Registration Office: Article 30.
The requirements to register the mortgage include, inter alia:
1. An executed mortgage; and
2. Two documents executed by the
Applicant stating:
a. The details of the debtor and creditor, their place of residence and profession;
b. Vessel Description (including certificate of registration);
c. Date of the Mortgage;
d. Value of the debt;
e. Terms relating to interest and means of payment; and
f. The domicile of the creditor.
Article 33 provides that a Ship Mortgage has priority, subject to maritime concession rights (discussed below).
Concessional (or priority) claims are dealt with in Article 13 of the Maritime Law.
The claims in order of priority are:
a. Judicial expenses in respect to the arrest and sale, public taxes, cargo and port charges, pilotage, compensation for damage to ports (including navigational routes and docks), expenses for removing navigational hazards and costs associated with the detention and maintenance of the ship.
b. Crew wages (being debts arising under the employment contracts of the Master and crew);
c. Salvage;
d. Collisions and other navigation accidents and compensation for physical injuries to crew and passengers including damage to goods and luggage resulting therefrom; and
e. Debts resulting from contracts entered into by the Master (outside the registration port and within the limits of the Master's legal authority) for necessities, maintenance of the ship or continuance of its voyage.
Concessional claims have certain independent limitation periods detailed in Article 23. The general rule is that such concessional claims expire after a period of 12 months. The debts resulting from contracts entered into by the Master however expire after a period of 6 months. The limitation periods stipulated may however be extended to 3 years in certain circumstances.
Arrest
The arrest of a ship is dealt with in Section 3, Part 1 of Chapter 1. Article 42 provides that a ship may be arrested for the following types of claims:
a. Damage caused as a result of a maritime collision or otherwise;
b. Loss of life or physical injury caused by the ship or its use;
c. Assistance and salvation;
d. Contracts relating to the use of the ship pursuant to a charterparty or otherwise;
e. Contracts relating to the delivery of goods pursuant to a charterparty, bill of lading or otherwise;
f. Destruction or damage of goods or luggage delivered by the ship;
g. Mutual maritime losses;
h. Towage and Pilotage;
i. Supply of goods and services to the ship necessary for its use or maintenance in any place where the supply took place;
j. Construction, repairing or equipping the ship (including docking charges);
k. Crew wages;
l. Contracts entered into by the Master, shippers, lessees or agents on account of the ship or owner;
m. Disputes relating to ownership of the ship; and
n. Disputes relating to co-ownership, possession or use of the ship.
The Maritime Law contains the statutory framework for arrest procedure and subsequent judicial sale in Chapter 2, Section 3. Article 46 makes provision for release of the ship upon the provision of appropriate security. There is no statutory recognition of a P&I Club Letter of Guarantee in Qatar and the form of security usually accepted is a bond or bank guarantee.
Contracts of Carriage
Notwithstanding Qatar has not acceded to the International Conventions, the Maritime Law does in many instances replicate the provisions of the Hague-Visby Rules in respect of the obligations and defences of the carrier.
Article 157 provides the general obligation on the carrier (albeit in the negative) in the following terms:
The carrier shall not be liable for the destruction (loss) or damage of goods caused by unsea worthiness of the ship for navigation unless such unseaworthiness is due to the failure of the carrier to exercise reasonable effort (due diligence) to make the ship seaworthy or to supply it with the necessary materials, supplies and crew, and to prepare suitable holds, cool rooms and other parts of the ship in which goods are carried fit for placing the goods, transporting and preserving them.
In all cases where such destruction or damage is caused by unseaworthiness, the burden of proving that reasonable effort has been exerted shall be on the carrier or other person seeking the exemption provided for in this article.
Article 158 outlines the defences available to the carrier which follow Article 4, Rule 2 of the Hague-Visby Rules:
a. Act, neglect or default of the master, mariner, pilot, or the servants of the carrier in the navigation or in the management of the ship.
b. Fire, unless caused by the actual fault or privity of the carrier.
c. Perils, dangers and accidents of the sea or other navigable waters.
d. Act of God.
e. Act of war.
f. Act of public enemies.
g. Arrest or restraint of princes, rulers or people, or seizure under legal process.
h. Quarantine restrictions.
i. Act or omission of the shipper or owner of the goods, his agent or representative.
j. Strikes or lock-outs or stoppage or restraint of labour from whatever cause, whether partial or general.
k. Riots and civil commotions.
l. Saving or attempting to save life or property at sea.
m. Wastage in bulk or weight or any other loss or damage arising from inherent defect, quality or vice of the goods.
n. Insufficiency of packing.
o. Insufficiency or inadequacy of marks.
p. Latent defects not discoverable by due diligence.
q. Any other cause arising without the actual fault or privity of the carrier, or without the fault or neglect of the agents or servants of the carrier, but the burden of proof shall be on the person claiming the benefit of this exception to show that neither the actual fault or privity of the carrier nor the fault or neglect of the agents or servants of the carrier contributed to the loss or damage.
Period of Responsibility
Article 164 applies the Maritime Law to all maritime transport pursuant to bills of lading between the time of loading of goods onboard the vessel and the unloading thereof. Article 166 however extends the carrier's period of responsibility where the transport is undertaken in consecutive stages (a through bill of lading) until the end of the transport and provides that the issuing carrier shall act as a guarantor for the acts of subsequent carriers.
The Maritime Law does not compulsorily apply to:
a. A charterparty unless a bill of lading is issued thereunder. Article 152 however provides that if there is an inconsistency between the terms of a charterparty and the bill of lading with respect to the relationship of Owner and Charterer the charterparty terms will prevail. Further, the article provides that where there is an inconsistency between the terms of the charterparty and the bill of lading with respect to the relationship between the carrier/charterer and shipper the terms of the bill of lading shall prevail unless it is agreed that the terms of the charterparty will otherwise prevail.
b. The transport of live animals; and
c. Goods shipped on deck provided the bill of lading is appropriately claused.
Limitation amount
The Maritime Law does not adopt the limitations contained within the various International Conventions, for example 2 SDR's per kilogram or 666.67 SDR's per package. The Maritime Law provides that the carrier shall not be liable for any loss or damage exceeding QR1000.00 for each package or unit (Article 159).
Consistent with the Hague-Visby Rules any attempt by the carrier to lessen its liability by agreement is null and void and of no effect. However, Article 162 is an unusual provision in that it provides that such a special agreement to lessen the carrier's liability can be made where the carriage relates to "coastal navigation" or in other cases where the goods transported or the condition or circumstances of the carriage, or the exceptional circumstances in which the goods are to be carried justifies such a special arrangement.
However, in such cases a bill of lading should not be issued and the special agreement should be recorded in a receipt which acts as a non-negotiable instrument.
In practice, for contracts of shipment evidenced by a bill of lading the inability of the carrier to lessen its liability remains.
Delay
Article 165 specifically provides that the carrier shall be liable for delay in delivering the goods unless such delay was due to one of the defences provided for in Article 158.
Time for suit
Article 167 is again consistent with the Hague-Visby Rules in that it extinguishes all rights against the carrier after the expiration of 12 months from the date of delivery of the goods, or the date from which the goods should have been delivered.
Conclusion
This article gives a general outline of the Maritime Law of Qatar and does not constitute legal advice. Unofficial English translations have been relied upon and it should be noted that only the Arabic text of the law has effect before the Courts of Qatar.
Although in some respects similar to common law jurisdictions the Maritime Law of the State of Qatar is contained within national law and is not in all respects consistent with the various international conventions insurers, carriers and shippers may be familiar with.
Adv. Mohammed Al-Marri in Association with Al Tamimi & Company has local expertise in maritime and shipping matters in the State of Qatar whether litigious or commercial and is available 24 hours a day to meet the needs of its clients.
By Glenn OBrien
© Al Tamimi & Company 2006
