A Study On Imputation Of Ship Indirect Collision

Ship indirect collision is often appeared in legal practice. However,the relevant laws and regulations are vague, which is not yet clearlydefined the concept and nature of indirect collision, and also not clearlystipulated the subject of rights and obligations. The cognizance of thedamage compensation liability and the imputation principle are still notclear.Based on reexamination of the meaning of ship collision, theconcept of ship indirect collision should be defined: the accident in theprocess of sailing, due to the fault or error on driving or control, althoughit is not occur actual contact.Firstly, based on the concept of ship indirect collision, this paperanalyzed the legal relationship between indirect collisions of ship, whichclarified the nature of indirect collision in maritime torts.Secondly, this paper discussed the subject of right and responsibility, which include the ship-owner, the operator connected, the owner of thegoods and the humans who suffered personal injury. The main bodies ofresponsibility not only conclude ship-owner and lessee of registeredbareboat, but also conclude operator of ship, operator connected, lessee ofunregistered bareboat, insurance company and classification society.Finally, this paper discussed cognizance method of causality,identify that an indirect collision should have both causal relationship andnavigation error at the same time. This paper also discussed theimputation principle of indirect collision, establishing a dual system ofimputation principle, which is fault liability principle and comparativenegligence principle. In the meantime, the paper makes somesuggestions on modifying the actual law.