The Study On The Liability Subject Of Compensation For Ship Collision

The problem of ship collision damage compensation is an urgent problem needed to be solved after the ship collision happened. To determine the eligibility responsibility subject to bear the liability is a vital part of it. How to determine the responsibility subject of the ship collision problem, the 1910 International Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules of Law with Respect to Collision stipulates that the ship in fault is liable for the compensation. However, China does not recognize the "action in rem",so the victim can not regard the ship as the defendant to sue it directly. Throughout China’s legal system, the People’s Republic of China Maritime Law does not have a clear definition. We can only rely on the Provision of the Supreme People’s Court of the PRC on Some Issues about the Trial of the Cases of Ship Collision Disputes promulgated in April 2008. However the judicial interpretation does not fundamentally solve the problem, the discussion on ship collision responsibility subjects of the judicial interpretation in theoretical and practical circles hasn’t been stopped. In view of this, this article intended to departure from China’s actual situation, based on legislation and practice of ship collision, taken theory of the Tort Liability Law as a support, and referred to the results of theoretical studies on ship collision at home and abroad, and then gave a systematic and comprehensive study on responsibility subject for ship collision damages. On this basis, this article will give recommendations and opinions on ship collision legislation, in order to drive our ship collision damage compensation liability system of development and perfection.This article is divided into four chapters.Chapter 1, "The Outline of the Liability Subject of Compensation for Ship Collision". Illustrates the elementary concepts involved in the article, such as the definition, characteristic and key component of the liability subject of compensation for ship collision. Meanwhile it points out the problems existed in the current provisions of domestic legislation on the liability subject of compensation for ship collision, in order to lay the foundation for the later narrative. Chapter 2, "The Study of the Related Countries’Legislation on the Liability Subject of Compensation for Ship Collision". From an international perspective, this chapter focuses on analysis and review the problems and shortcomings reflected in the legislation on the liability subject of compensation for ship collision of the other advanced countries, and then draws on the valuable experience for our domestic legislation from it.Chapter 3, "The Principle of Determining the Liability Subject of Compensation for Ship Collision". In order to perfect our national legislation on compensation liability for ship collision and provide reasons for the later articles, this chapter summarizes two principles of determining the liability subject of compensation for ship collision, the principle of vicarious liability and the principle of actual management and controlling of the ship, based on the theory of Tort Liability Law and the successful legislative experience of the United Kingdom, Canada and other countries.Chapter 4, "Identification and Determination of the Liability Subject of Compensation for Ship Collision". Starting from the shipping practice, this chapter focuses on analysis of the legal status of liability subject of shipowners, bareboat charterers, ship operators and ship managers using two principles. It intends to determine the true and proper liability subject of compensation for ship collision.