Maritime Law and Shipping Regulations: IMO Conventions, Cargo Claims and Ship Arrest – Paris, 7–11 Dec 2026

Programme overview

Introduction:

Maritime law and shipping regulations decide who pays when cargo arrives damaged, a vessel is detained in port, two ships collide or a salvor claims a reward, yet shipping, port and insurance teams often meet these rules only when a claim letter or an arrest order lands. This Core Concept course trains practitioners to trace liability through the international conventions, read bills of lading and carriage regimes, prepare for port state control inspections, and handle collision, salvage, general average, limitation and ship arrest cases. Participants build a Maritime Legal Exposure and Claims File for their own operation.

Course Objectives:

• Identify the sources of maritime law and apply UNCLOS zones and flag state and port state jurisdiction to a vessel's position and activity
• Map the duties that SOLAS, MARPOL, STCW and the Maritime Labour Convention place on shipowners, operators and port interests
• Prepare a vessel or terminal for a port state control inspection and respond to deficiencies and detention
• Determine carrier liability for cargo loss or damage under the Hague-Visby, Hamburg and Rotterdam Rules and the bill of lading terms
• Assess collision, salvage and general average incidents and the limitation of liability available to the shipowner
• Assemble a maritime claim with security, including P&I club involvement and the arrest of ships where it applies

Target Audience:

• Managers responsible for vessel operations and regulatory readiness in shipowning, ship management and operating companies
• Managers responsible for port, terminal and agency activities that interact with visiting ships and port state inspections
• In-house legal and contracts managers who advise on bills of lading, carriage disputes and ship arrest
• Marine insurance, P&I and claims managers who handle cargo, collision and salvage claims
• Freight forwarding and trading managers who carry cargo liability exposure under sea carriage documents

Course Outline:

Day 1: Sources of Maritime Law and the Law of the Sea

• Admiralty Law Sources: International Conventions, National Legislation, Standard Forms and Case Law
• UNCLOS Baselines, Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone and Exclusive Economic Zone Map
• Innocent Passage Rights and Coastal State Enforcement Limits
• Flag State Duties, Ship Registration and Nationality of Vessels
• Current-State Maritime Legal Exposure Screening Checklist

Day 2: IMO Regulatory Conventions and Port State Control

• IMO Convention Structure: Adoption, Entry into Force, Amendments and Protocols
• SOLAS as Amended: Ship Safety Chapters and Certificates Relevant to Operators
• MARPOL Annexes and Pollution Prevention Documents Carried on Board
• STCW Manning Certification and Maritime Labour Convention Seafarer Rights
• Port State Control Regional MOUs, Inspection Procedure, Deficiency Codes and Detention

Day 3: Carriage of Goods by Sea and Bills of Lading

• Bill of Lading Functions: Receipt, Evidence of Contract and Document of Title
• Hague-Visby Rules Carrier Duties, Exceptions and Package Limitation
• Hamburg Rules and Rotterdam Rules Liability Regimes Comparison Matrix
• Clean, Claused, Switch and Electronic Bills of Lading and Letters of Indemnity
• Cargo Loss and Damage Claim Notice, Time Bar and Evidence Pack

Day 4: Collision, Salvage, General Average, Limitation and Ship Arrest

• Collision and Allision Liability Apportionment and Incident Evidence
• International Convention on Salvage: Contract Salvage, Pure Salvage and Reward Criteria
• York-Antwerp Rules General Average Declaration, Security and Adjustment
• Convention on Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims and Protocol Limitation Funds
• Maritime Claims Security: P&I Club Letters of Undertaking and Ship Arrest Conventions

Day 5: Maritime Claims Case Work and Legal Exposure File

• Guided Case: Container Cargo Damage Claim Against Carrier Under a Bill of Lading
• Guided Case: Tanker Detention After Port State Control Inspection Findings
• Guided Case: Bulk Carrier Collision Followed by Salvage and General Average Declaration
• Ship Arrest Response Plan and Security Negotiation Role Assignment
• Maritime Legal Exposure and Claims File Build and Peer Review

Skills You Will Gain:

• Maritime Jurisdiction Analysis
• IMO Convention Mapping
• Port State Control Readiness
• Bill of Lading Interpretation
• Cargo Liability Assessment
• General Average Handling
• Limitation of Liability Analysis
• Ship Arrest Response

Why Attend This Course:

• Return with a Maritime Legal Exposure and Claims File built on your own vessels, cargoes or port operations
• Read a claim letter, protest or arrest notice and know which convention and document decide the answer
• Brief management and insurers with the facts, time bars and security options that shape a settlement
• Compare regulatory and claims practice with staff from shipowners, ports, insurers, traders and law firms

Conclusion:

Maritime law works as a chain of conventions, documents and contracts that decides liability long before a dispute reaches court. The course moves from the sources of maritime law, UNCLOS zones and flag state duties, through IMO safety, pollution, training and labour conventions and port state control, to bills of lading and the three cargo liability regimes, then to collision, salvage, general average, limitation and ship arrest. The final day applies these rules to cargo, detention and casualty cases and produces a Maritime Legal Exposure and Claims File.