Thinking Of The Legal Status And Responsibility System Of Classification Societies

Classification societies provide many kinds of services such as survey and inspection for ships or ship's apparels in order to guarantee the safety at sea, so they play an essential role in the marine industry. For the recent century, with the rapid development of classification societies, they strengthen the technical powers, enrich the inspection experiences, widen the service scope and accordingly improve the financial solvency. At the same time, classification societies are easier to be the defendants in any related litigations, which will be one of the main risks that classification societies will be faced with in this century. Under this background, how to correctly recognize the legal position and liabilities of classification societies has been an issue to be settled imminently in new era. However, how to judge the legal status of classification societies, whether classification societies should bear the responsibilities, which duty classification societies have and whether classification societies are entitled to limit their liabilities are all the questions that have not been solved yet; While not enough theoretical research has been performed on the liability issues of classification societies, neither were the relevant international or national legislations.By introducing the establishment, the development of classification societies and the variance of their functions, on the basis of some relevant legal provisions and cases mainly provided in U.K., America, France as well as China, this dissertation analyzes the legal status and the relationships participated by classification societies; explores the present condition of the liability system of classification societies; discusses the developing trend of the liability system and the corresponding countermeasures of our country, in the hope of offering a few references for acknowledging the legal position of classification societies and establishing their liability system. The dissertation is composed of four parts as follows:Part One, chapter one, briefly introduces the history of classification societies and the process of enlarging their functions to point out that at present the classification societies' functions could be departed into three kinds: statutory certification service, classification service and industrial service.Part Two, chapter two, analyzes the legal character of classification societiesand the legal relations involved classification societies when they offer various services, in order to recognize the legal status of classification societies, which is one of the most important parts of the dissertation.The provisions of the legal character of classification societies in different countries have a few appreciable differences. Moreover, because of the profit making operations which classification societies have began to carry out, the traditional legal character that classification societies are public organizations has already been challenged. Therefore, by comparing the operation and the service scope of the modern classification societies with the traditional classification societies', the writer will expound the modern legal character of classification societies. On the other hand, different services could lead the different legal relations participated by classification societies, so the writer will explain the legal position of classification societies in three different relationships, which are the relationships arising from statutory certification service, non- statutory service and the relationship between classification societies and the third parties. In virtue of the distinct viewpoints on the legal position of classification societies in their statutory certification service, it becomes a complicated problem to discuss the legal position in that special situation.Part Three, as one of the most important parts of the dissertation too, including chapter three, four, five and six, is about the liability system of classification societies, which emphasizes the liability categories and imputations of classification societies, the contractual liability, tort liability and particular liability that classification societies may assume. Owning to lack of the uniform stipulations in legislation and occurrence of the most controversies in judicial practice, the writer will elaborate the distinct liabilities which classification societies should assume by invoking a lot of leading cases in the world and China. Simultaneously, the writer will also analyze the developing trend of the liability system of classification societies.In this part, when classification societies conclude contracts with shipowners, it is significant that whether classification societies have the implied warranty of workmanlike performance and whether shipowners have the non—delegable duty of seaworthiness. When classification societies are responsible for tort, the essential ingredients of the tort liability as well as the liability as a result of negligent misrepresentation should be mainly considered. When classificationsocieties provide the statutory certification service, the administrative liability of the classification societies becomes the key point.Part Four, including the last two chapters of the dissertation, is a tentative study on establishing and perfecting the liability system of classification societies. The writer firstly affirms the necessity and urgency of establishing the liability system, then tables some proposals on protective measure for classification societies, such as setting up a liability insurance system, a compensation fund system and a limited liability regime, in favor of the balance of classification societies' liabilities and their healthy development.