| In response to the increasing maritime litigations that come along with the rapid growth of foreign trade in recent years, China opportunely adopted its Maritime Code and the Special Rules. This is certainly a significant progress in Chinese maritime legislation because for a long time neither a practical, substantive law for maritime disputes nor an appropriate procedural law for admiralty litigation was available in China. The Chinese courts had to deal with maritime disputes mainly by seeking reference from the general principles of relevant international practices. To improve this situation, the adoption of the Chinese Maritime Code and the Special Rules is undoubtedly long awaited by both Chinese legal regime and the international maritime law society.;Nevertheless, as China's maritime legislation is still in its early stage, the imperfection in its drafting, the inadequacy of its judicial consideration and the inconsistency between its admiralty practices are virtually inevitable. In a comparative sense, in order to further improve the maritime law regime, China might well draw some beneficial references from the experience of the admiralty practice in some other legal systems.;This thesis commences with a brief historical review of maritime lien laws. It then proceeds to evaluate the Chinese substantive laws relating to maritime liens. Finally, the thesis attempts to address the procedural issues in the enforcement of maritime liens. |
