Legal System Of Ship Registration

‘Legal system of ship registration’ argues that through reform, legal system ofship registration has played a positive role in a country’s maritime industry. Based onthis argument, the dissertation believed that ship registeration’s legal system buildingis not only to focus on the implementation of specific policies and measures, but alsoto pay attention to the substance of the law. Practice has proved that a vitality shipregistration legal system always conforms to international trends and maritimeenvironments.To illustrate this point, the dissertation focuses on legal arguments of: a) socialrole played by the legal system of ship registration; b) registration control diversitybetween nations; c) legal measures to balance the mentioned diversity and the effectof these measures; d) a state’s normal considerations when there is a need to improveits ship registration legal system.The funtions of ship registration legal system can be expressed as several areas.It implement maritime policy into societies. Secondly, ship registration act has beenbound by law, which means rights and obligations bind on the registration parties.Again, it shapes the ship registration mode. Therefore legislators are recommend toconsider how policies are effectively implemented, what legal effect will be achieved,and which registration mode is suited to their own legal system.Political and economic objectives’ difference cause ship registrations notconsistent. Through international conventions, the right of navigation as well as the recognition of the State of flag’s rights and obligations are mutually accepted by theinternational community. All of these as a whole brings the discussion of registrationcontrol diversity, which hitherto procure registry selection and choice of law. Then,ships resources are redistributed worldwidely. Along with registry selection,diversity of registration control pose negative effects: ship registration laws, in somecontries, is considered to be ineffective control system which root accidents at sea. Inorder to address these issues, international community tries to establish a uniform setof ship regulatory standard from flag state control, port state control and ship qualityimproving. International convention constrained flag states and port states’supervision and strict regulatory standards to adjust such diversity and balance therelationship between business interests and the public interests.The supervision efforts have played a significant role in ships quality. However,chioce behavior has not been eliminated, and even became one of the currentpractical trends in ship registration. Early international convention on shipregistration was actively trying to restrict choice behavior, but settle a matter byleaving it unsettled. Latter, internatinal convention turn sights on the supervision ofthe ship which made flag state control be indirectly regulated. Since sovereigntycould not easily breaked through, international law was powerless to prevent registrychoosing to become a habit. What’s more, the dilemma of shipowner recognitionwas still unresolved. All such practices show that directly adjustment method cannotsolve the law conflicts exited in ship registration area. For these reasons, shipregistration legal system needs to develop in line with internationa lawl and nationaltrends.The existence of registration diversity makes registry choosing be a incumbentfact. As registration diversity cannot be well balanced, national laws still have to facethe problems posed by law inconsistent: fleet resources flows in the world. Fleetcapacity drive the development of maritime trade and brings tremendous value.Some countries try to transform their legal system to attract ship to be registeredunder their jurisdiction, in order to expand the country’s fleet capacity.Flag of convenience countries take legal measures of cost control to attract ship resources. Subsequently, the traditional maritime countries launched internationalship registry and offshore ship registry to compete with domestic fleets’ flow. Thenthere is a legal system emerge from newly developing regions which absorbs theadvantages of flag of convenience and traditional registration. These reformsindicate that legal system of ship regiatration transform facilitate the shippingindustry.Practice of ship registration enlightens us that laws reform could promoteshipping industry’s development. To maximize such function, the legal system ofship registration should: a) meet the demands of practice; b) require legal policiesrun by rules. Of the above target, legal system of ship registration should becarefully designed. Clear procedures and norms need to be complied with. In orderto make the law effective implementation, law makers must ensure them beoperationalized.Accordingly, the dissertation recommend that a ship registry system should beestablished in line with the requirements of the practice in China. In view, the shipregistration system reform, if it is initiated, should establish a primary goal:“toimprove the quality of their fleet”, and a supreme goal:“to promote the maritimeindustry structure”. Then based on the mentioned two goals, the rule of law shouldbe established in line with China’s current status of shipping industry.