Home International
Conventions
| Arbitration & Legal Procedure |
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Convention
for the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (1958)
The Convention is codified at 9
U.S.C. 201-208. See also the UNCITRAL
Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration (1985), the UNCITRAL
Arbitration Rules and related arbitration materials at the UNCITRAL site.
The
Inter-American Convention on International Commercial Arbitration (Panama
City 1975)
Hague
Convention of 1971 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgements
in Civil and Commercial Matters
See also the Supplementary
Protocol to the Convention.
Preliminary
Draft Hague Convention on Jurisdiction and Foreign Judgments in Civil and
Commercial Matters
The diplomatic Conference continues to work
on this draft convention.
Hague
Convention of 1970 on the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil and Commercial
Matters
Hague
Convention of 1965 on the service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial
Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters
Vienna
Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969)
International
Convention Relating to the Arrest of Sea-Going Ships (Brussels 1952)
International
Convention on the Arrest of Ships (Geneva 1999)
| Carriage of Goods & Passengers |
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The
Hague Rules
The
Visby Amendments
The Hague-Visby Rules concerning the carriage
of goods by sea are the Hague Rules (International Convention for the Unification
of Certain Rules of Law relating to Bills of Lading (Brussels 1924)) as
modified by the Visby Amendments (Protocol to Amend the International Convention
for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law Relating to Bills of Lading
(Brussels 1968)). See also the SDR
Protocol (Brussels 1979) amending the Hague-Visby Rules.
The
Hamburg Rules
The United Nations Convention on the Carriage
of Goods by Sea (Hamburg 1968).
United
Nations Convention on International Multimodal Transport of Goods (Geneva
1980)
Convention
on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR) (Geneva
1956) at Lex Mercatoria
United
Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (Vienna
1980)
United
Nations Convention on the Liability of Operators of Transport Terminals
in International Trade (Vienna 1991)
United
Nations (UNCTAD) Minimum Standards for Shipping Agents (1988)
at Lex Mercatoria
Convention
on a Code of Conduct for Liner Conferences (Geneva 1974)
International
Convention on Safe Containers (Geneva 1972)
See also the 1993
Amendments.
Convention
relating to Civil Liability in the Field of Maritime Carriage of Nuclear
Material (Brussels 1971)
CMI
Rules for Electronic Bills of Lading at CMI
CMI
Uniform Rules for Seawaybills at CMI
Inter-Club
New York Produce Exchange Agreement (1996)
International
Commercial Terms 1990 (INCOTERMS) at
Lex Mercatoria
A summary of the International Chamber of
Commerce's (ICC) recognized definitions of shipping document terms (FOB,
CIF, FAS, etc.). See also the ICC's Uniform
Customs and Practices for Documentary Credits (UCP 500).
Convention
Relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea (Athens
1974)
See also the
1976 Protocol and the
1990 Protocol.
EC
Convention on the Law Applicable to Contractual Obligations
(Rome
1980) at Lex Mercatoria
See also the Rome
Convention web site.
Convention
for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law with Respect to Collisions
between Vessels (Brussels 1910)
Convention
on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (COLREGS)
(London 1972)
See also the US Coast Guard's copy of the
Inland
and International Navigation Rules.
Convention
on Facilitation of International Maritime Traffic (London 1965)
York
Antwerp Rules (1994) at Lex Mercatoria
The latest version of the rules for adjusting
General Average claims as prepared by the Comite Maritime International
(CMI). The rules apply as the result of contract, rather than through national
legislation.
United
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)
was open for signature in December, 1982, and came into force on November
16, 1994. See also the site maintained by the UN
Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, which includes ratification
information and other related documents.
International
Convention on Maritime Liens and Mortgages (1993)
International
Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules relating to Maritime Liens
and Mortgages (Brussels 1967)
United
Nations Convention on Conditions for Registration of Ships (Geneva 1986)
Convention
relating to Registration of Rights in respect of Vessels under Construction
(Brussels 1967)
International
Convention relating to the Limitation of Liability of Owners of Sea-Going
Ships (Brussels 1957)
See also the 1979
Protocol Amending the Convention.
Convention
on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims (London 1976)
See also the 1996
Protocol to Amend the Convention (London).
International
Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution (Brussels 1969)
See also the 1976
Protocol and 1992
London Protocol.
International
Convention on the Establishment of an International Fund for Compensation
for Oil Pollution Damage (Brussels 1971)
See also the 1976
London Protocol and the 1992
London Protocol.
International
Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (1973) (MARPOL) as
amended by the Protocol of 1978 (London) at the
Australian Treaties Library
See also the 1996
Amendments to the 1978 Protocol (London) and the 1997
Protocol.
International
Convention Relating to Intervention on the High Seas in Cases of Oil Pollution
Casualties (Brussels 1987)
International
Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and
Other Matter (London Convention) (London 1972)
See also the 1996
Protocol and the London
Convention web site.
International
Convention for the Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil (OILPOL) (London 1954)
See also the
1962 and the
1969 amendments.
International
Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-Operation (London
1990)
International
Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in connection with
the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by Sea (London 1996)
See also the UNEP
Basel Convention web site.
See also the Helsinki
Commission web site.
International
Safety Management (ISM) Code (1993)
See also the Guidelines
on the Implementation of the International Safety Management (ISM) Code
(1995) and the United
States Coast Guard Port State Control (PSC) web site.
Mediterranean
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)
See the MOU
text at the site.
Paris
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at Paris MOU
site
The 1982 Paris MOU consists of 18 participating
maritime administrations and covers the waters of the European coastal
States and the North Atlantic basin from North America to Europe. Its aim
is to eliminate the operation of sub-standard ships through a system of
Port State control. See also the Equasis site, which is an organization developed by the European Commission and
the French Maritime Administration to collect existing safety-related information
on ships from both public and private sources for posting on the Internet.
Tokyo
MOU (1993) at Tokyo MOU site
Memorandum of Understanding on Port State
Control in the Asia-Pacific Region.
Viña
del Mar (1992) at Viña del Mar site
The Latin American Agreement on Port State
Control of Vessels.
International
Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) (London 1974) at the Australian Treaties Library
See also the Protocol
of 1978 and the Protocol
of 1988 and the Amendments
to the Annex (1995).
Amendments
to the Annex of SOLAS, including the International Ship and Port Facility
Security (ISPS)Code (London 2002)
International
Code for the Safe Carriage of Packaged Irradiated Nuclear Fuel, Plutonium
and High-Level Radioactive Wastes on Board Ships (INF Code) (London 1999)
International
Convention on Load Lines (London 1966) at the
Australian Treaties Library
See also the
1988 Protocol.
International
Convention on Tonnage Measurement of Ships (London 1969)
International
Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue (Hamburg 1979)
See also the
1998 Amendments.
International
Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for
Seafarers (STCW) (London 1978)
Seafarers
Training, Certification and Watchkeeping Code (STCW) (1995)
at the USCG Site
See also the U.S.
Coast Guard's web site concerning the Code.
International
Convention for the Safety of Fishing Vessels (Torremolinos 1977)
at the Australian Treaties Library
Convention
on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation
(Rome 1988)
Protocol
for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Fixed Platform
Located on the Continental Shelf (Rome 1988)
Convention
for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law respecting Assistance and Salvage
at Sea (Brussels 1910)
See also the
1967 Protocol.
International
Convention on Salvage (London 1989)
ILO
Convention Concerning Seafarers' Hours of Work and the Manning of Ships
(1996)
ILO
Convention Concerning the Repatriation of Seafarers (1987)
ILO
Convention Concerning Health Protection and Medical Care for Seafarers
(1987)
ILO
Convention Concerning Seafarers' Welfare at Sea and in Port (1987)
ILO
Convention Concerning Minimum Standards in Merchant Ships (1976)
See also the
1996 Protocol
International
Labour Organization - ILOLEX
This is the conventions database of the ILO,
which includes additional conventions concerning seafarers and information
on treaty status and ratifications.
| Treaty Ratifications & Status |
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IMO Conventions
IMO's site includes a directory of IMO sponsored
maritime conventions - a helpful summary of the individual conventions
and each related protocol or amendment. IMO also provides complete information
on the status and ratification of each convention.
Comite
Maritime International (CMI)
CMI provides ratification information on
the UN, Brussels, IMO and Unidroit maritime conventions.
Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators
Ratification information on marine environmental treaties is available here.
International
Labour Organization (ILO) Treaty Ratifications
Information on the ratification and status
of ILO treaties is available here.
InforMare
This online shipping publication maintains
a chart showing the ratification status of certain conventions, including
the Hague-Visby Rules, the Limitation Convention, CMR and the Warsaw Convention.
United
Nations - Status of Multilateral Treaties
The United Nations provides the most comprehensive
information on the status of treaties, but it is fee based.
| Treaty Databases & Directories |
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Australian
Treaties Library
This is a superb online collection of multilateral
treaties maintained by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and
Trade. The database is searchable with the assistance of the Australasian
Legal Information Institute.
Canado-American
Treaties
This is a government and academic sponsored
site that provides free access to the text of all bilateral treaties between
the United States and Canada from 1783 to 1997.
Council
of Europe, Treaty Office
This is an excellent portal into the European
Treaty Series database. It provides the full text of treaties, information
on ratification and entry into force, treaty summaries and explanatory
reports.
EcoLex
EcoLex is a joint project of the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Conservation Union. The site
uses the Union's Environmental Law Information System (ELIS) and full text
information available from UNEP's Computerised Environmental Law Information
Base (CELIB) and other sources. The database includes national legislation,
treaties and court decisions.
Environmental Treaties and Resource Indicators
An exhaustive collection of environmental treaties, including the marine environment, from Columbia University.
Hague Conference on Private International Law
Conventions concluded under the Hague Conference auspices, with status and ratification information.
Internet
Guide to International Fisheries Law
This is a comprehensive site for information
on international fisheries law and management, which includes a large collection
of international agreements.
Marine
and Coastal Treaties
A database of ocean and coastal treaties
maintained by the Multilateral Treaties Project at Tufts University.
United
Nations Treaty Collection
The UN maintains its large database of multilateral
treaties, but the database is fee based.
U.S.
Department of State (Legal Advisor)
The Treaties in Force page with an index
of Treaties of the United States. The Legal Advisor also maintains a Private
International Law index. |
