The Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention : an analysis of its 'limitation of liability' and 'settlement of disputes' aspects

Abstract

The Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention came into force on 14th of April 2015 and provides a unified framework for wreck removal. The Convention provides coastal states with rights to remove wreck(s) that pose a hazard to safe navigation and the marine environment found within their Exclusive Economic Zone. It obliges the shipowner with strict liability for reporting, marking and removing the wreck. It also requires compulsory insurance and instills direct action against the shipowner. This thesis provides an overview of the development of the Nairobi Wreck Removal Convention and the legal impact it has on both the international and national scale. The author expands on the specific legal provisions within the Convention and assesses the implications of the geographical scope with the opt-in clause available to States to include their territorialsea and internal waters. An essential characteristic of this thesis is: to provide an analysis of the principle of limitation of liability in wreck removal, an understanding of who can limit liability and the strict liability regime afforded to the shipowner. On another tier of global limitation, the author underlines the important role of the shipowner, overlapping of the main conventions used for limitation of liability, as well as its implementation in Malta. Furthermore, this thesis explores the notion of dispute settlement under the Nairobi Convention and United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Two judgments are discussed to give a practical understanding on the concept of limitation of liability, how important it is for the registered owner and the soaring wreck removal costs. This analysis ends with the advantages and disadvantages created by this Convention, its reconciliatory tone by bridging the gap in existing legislation and the harmonization of uncertainties which are predominant to limitation of liability.