Anselmo Reyes on Cross-Border Insolvency and Shipping Companies (LMCLQ)

"Cross-border insolvency and shipping companies"
Anselmo Reyes
Lloyd’s Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly

2016, pp 517-528

Abstract: This article examines the Hong Kong Court of Appeal’s decision in The Convenience Container, where the court refused to set aside in rem writs even though the shipowner company was in liquidation in a foreign jurisdiction. In view of the principle of “modified universalism”, recently endorsed by the English Supreme Court and approved by the Hong Kong Court, the author doubts the correctness of the reasoning in the case and argues that, upon liquidation, the shipowner company ceased to be the beneficial owner of the relevant vessels. Hence, the plaintiffs should not have been allowed to jump the queue of the shipowner’s unsecured creditors by bringing statutory in rem proceedings against the vessel. 

Felix Chan on Anti-Suit Injunctions and the Doctrine of Comity (MLR)

"Anti-suit Injunctions and the Doctrine of Comity"

Felix WH Chan

Modern Law Review

March 2016, Vol. 79, Issue 2, pp 341-354

Abstract: Hin-Pro International Logistics Limited v CSAV [2015] EWCA Civ 401 is an important case in the areas of anti-suit injunctions, contractual interpretation and private international law. Despite the ambiguities surrounding the jurisdiction clause contained in the bills of lading, the Court of Appeal construed the jurisdiction clause as ‘exclusive’ in the context of a ‘contractual background’, and affirmed the continuation of the anti-suit injunction granted by the Commercial Court. It is argued that the approach of applying the common law principles of contractual interpretation to a bill of lading is questionable. The approach used to apply English private international law is problematic in a number of ways. There are legitimate reasons for concern that the doctrine of comity in English private international law may become undermined as a result. 

New Book: Shipping and Logistics Law: Principles and Practice in Hong Kong, 2nd ed (HKU Press)

Shipping and Logistics Law: Principles and Practice in Hong Kong, 2nd Edition
Felix WH Chan, Jimmy JM Ng, Sik Kwan Tai
HKU Press, October 2015

Description: This book provides a general introduction to the basic principles of shipping and logistics law in Hong Kong. It contains many practical examples and illustrations from case law. Extracts of the relevant legislation and sample shipping documents are annexed in this book for reference. In this second edition, the authors have reformatted some of the materials. The book has been reoriented to concentrate on the parts of the legal framework which are most directly relevant to the logistics and maritime industry of Hong Kong. This new edition takes account of a number of new cases, new international conventions (such as the Rotterdam Rules), and significant changes introduced by legislative amendments since the last edition. 

      The book is intended primarily for students and teachers of transport studies and business logistics management and also provides useful guidance to shipowners, carriers, shipping agents, traders, insurers, bankers, logistics managers, arbitrators, mediators, and lawyers who need to acquire a clear understanding of the key principles in a practical context. 

Felix W H Chan is an associate professor in the Faculty of Law, the University of Hong Kong. 

Jimmy J M Ng is an assistant professor in the Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies, Hong Kong Polytechnic University. 

Sik Kwan Tai is a visiting lecturer in the Department of Logistics and Maritime Studies, Hong Kong Polytechnic University. 

“The material in the book is excellent . . . as a textbook for students and teachers of transport study and business logistics management, as well as a book of general interest to traders, bankers, logistics managers and lawyers.” 

—Mary Thomson, barrister and arbitrator

Click here to order the book.

Felix Chan on Specific Words of Incorporation in Bills of Lading

"Specific Words of Incorporation in Bills of Lading"
Felix Chan
The Law Quarterly Review
(2015), Vol. 131, pp. 372-376

Abstract: Caresse Navigation Ltd. v Zurich Assurances MAROC and others (M/V “Channel Ranger”) [2014] EWCA Civ 1366 has attracted wide attention by virtue of its application of common law principles of contractual interpretation. To all engaged in shipping and marine insurance, the decision is equally significant for its discussion with regard to bill of lading and charterparty contracts. Stated shortly, the English Court of Appeal had to decide whether the exclusive jurisdiction clause in the charterparty was binding on the parties of the bill of lading issued under the charterparty, even though the bill of lading itself only referred to “arbitration” without mentioning “jurisdiction” at all. In this commentary, the implications behind the reasoning of the decision are examined...  Full article download available on Westlaw.  This article and Dr Chan's earlier article, "Incorporating the Charterparty's Applicable Law Clause into Bills of Lading" [2012] LMCLQ 481 (with L Zhao), were recently cited in the 23rd edition of Scrutton on Charterparties and Bills of Lading, the leading work in the area for more than 130 years.