A Study On Maritime Performing Party In Rotterdam Rules

This paper composes of three chapters. Chapter 1 analyses the concept of maritime performing party, researches its origination that is in contractual carrier and performing carrier in Draft of COGSA1999, and analyses the influence of maritime performing party system to Himalaya Clause. Because maritime performing party includes independent contractor and onshore carrier in port area, maritime performing party system expands the subjects protected by Himalaya Clause. In Chapter 1, legal status of maritime performing party is also discussed, which is not a performing assistant but a independent contractor. Legal status of maritime performing party's employee is performing assistant. In addition, Chapter 1 compares maritime performing party system to the system of actual carrier, operator of transport terminals and ocean carrier of multimodal transport. Chapter 2 analyses the rights and responsibility of maritime performing party. Maritime performing party's rights compose of exemption of listed items, limitation of liability and lien on cargo, which are the same as carrier's. The responsibility of maritime performing party covers the period during which the arrival of the goods at the port of loading of a ship and their departure from the port of discharge of a ship, and the maritime performing party has custody of the goods, or at any other time to the extent that is participating in the performance of any of the activities contemplated by the contract of carriage. The responsibility period of maritime performing party completely links up the responsibility period of carrier. The joint liability of maritime performing party and carrier is a statutory tort liability, and the theory of group contracts will interpret the defence and limitation of liability of maritime performing party, so its characters combine tort and contract. Chapter 3 researches the defects of actual carrier system, operator of transport terminals in CMC, and multimodal transport systems in CMC and other laws, and at last put forward some suggestions to revise related laws in our country.