The English Courts have, generally, strictly construed safe port wording such that charterers are deemed to have given some form of safety warranty in the presence of safe port language in a charter party. This will probably be the case whether or not charterers anticipated doing so. A recent 2013 English decision in The Ocean Victory considered when a charterer’s… more »
On September 19, 2004 the fishing vessel, Ryan’s Commander, capsized, killing both Joseph and David Ryan who were returning from fishing off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. Following on the tragedy, the Ryan brothers’ widows and dependents (the “Estate”) sued a number of different parties including companies involved in the design and construction of the vessel (alleging negligence in… more »
In 2010 Canadian Maritime Law was changed by the enactment of Section 139 of the Marine Liability Act. That Section created a maritime lien where none existed previously. Prior to this enactment, unpaid Canadian suppliers of necessaries had at best only a statutory right in rem against the ship over which they rendered service. In contrast, in the United States,… more »
The fifth anniversary of the Marine Liability Act, S.C. 2001, c. 6 (the “Act”) is on August 8, 2001. While the Act has been written on before in this column, it is worth reviewing the scope of the Act given that almost 5 years has passed since it became the primary legislation in Canada dealing with maritime… more »
The last quarter of 2011 saw a number of important developments in workers compensation and occupational health and safety. Some developments will impact all employers in the province, while some will have particular impact on the maritime community. Regardless, all of the issues raised here will probably mean additional WCB-related costs for employers in the province. Expanded Benefits for Mental … more »
Watering-Down-Power-to-Regulate-Navigation-and-ShippingCanada as a federation divides the power to create laws between the federal parliament and the provincial legislatures. The power to create laws in relation to various subjects (e.g. criminal conduct, banking, fisheries, shipping, etc.) is set out in the Constitution Act, 1867 (formerly the British North America Act). The two key provisions dividing the power to legislate… more »
There are a number of pieces of legislation, both federal and provincial, dealing with the discharge of pollutants into the environment. Generally speaking federal legislation regulates the discharge of pollutants from ships. The two main pieces of federal legislation for ship source pollution are the Canada Shipping Act 2001, which came into force in July 2007, and the Migratory … more »
The arrest of property is a powerful legal tool. It enables a claimant to obtain security for their claim before having to prove the merits of their case. All a claimant needs to do is commence suit, and show by way of affidavit that their claim comes within the type of claim which gives rise to a right of arrest.… more »
The Federal government is constitutionally responsible for immigration laws and laws relating to navigation and shipping. As such Federal laws address the issue of illegal immigrants (deserters and stowaways) entering Canada on board vessels. Typically, the Federal government looks to pass on the cost of illegal immigration to others, where possible. To that end the Federal government through past and… more »
This paper was prepared for and presented to the Canadian Defence Lawyers’ conference “Law for Doctors/Medicine for Lawyers”, held in Vancouver in March, 2013. The paper discusses the concept of mitigation and outlines who bears the legal onus, the test, and the standard. Types of doctor’s advice are explored: Return to work… or not? Surgery Exercise/Physiotherapy Take your meds! Lose… more »