Ships, Nationality and

Registration
oProfessor Erik Rsg
oScandinavian Institute of
Maritime Law
oerik.rosag@jus.uio.no
ofolk.uio.no/erikro
 Ships, Nationality and
Registration

o Registration
o Public and private law
o International public law and national law
o Nationality
o Link to registration
o The importance of nationality:
Jurisdiction
o Ship
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 Registration: Privilege or duty?

o Open and closed registries

o Liberalization
o Not flying flag as a sanction

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The Norwegian Maritime Code

o Norwegian citizen
o 60% cases
o Part owners
o Limited partnerships
o Partnerships
o Direct registration

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 The NIS Act

o Conditions for registration

o NMC
o Main office in Norway
o All others
o Requirements
o Attorney, 1
o Management, 1
o Sailing limits, 4
o Effects - substantive law

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 Dual registry systems

State of ships registry State of c/p registry

UNCLOS Art. 91 and 92

Liens and Mortgages Convention Art. 16
Ship Registration Convention Art. 12

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Liens and Mortgages Convention Art 16
Temporary change of flag

If a se seagoing vessel registered in one State is permitted to fly

temporarily the flag of another State, the following shall apply:
(b) The law of the State of registration shall be determinative for the
purpose of recognition of registered mortgages, "hypothques" and
charges.
(d) No State Party shall permit a vessel registered in that State to fly
temporarily the flag of another State unless all registered mortgages,
"hypothques" or charges on that vessel have been previously satisfied
or the written consent of the holders of all such mortgages,
"hypothques" or charges has been obtained.
(g) Nothing in this Convention is to be understood to impose any obligation
on States Parties to permit foreign vessels to fly temporarily their flag
or national vessels to fly temporarily a foreign flag.

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The Danish dual registry system

o Bare boat registration TO Denmark

o DMC 22
o DIS Act 11a
o Bare boat registration FROM Denmark
o DMC 24
o DIS Act 11c

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 Registration and the right to
establish enterprises

o The right to establish enterprises

o EEA Agreement Art 31
o Ex parte Factortame [1991] 1 ECR
3905

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 NMC 1
Equal for the purposes of this Section in regards to property
owned by a Norwegian national is that owned by a person, company
or enterprise as included in the regulations in the EEA-agreement.
If the ship is owned by a company, enterprise or similar, the
activity must have been founded in accordance with the legislation
in one of the states connected with the EEA-agreement and have
its statutory head office, head administration or head enterprise in
one of these countries. Equal to the requirement of Norwegian
citizenship and address for the members of the board in paragraph
one no. 4 is citizenship and address in a state connected to the
EEA-agreement. It is a requirement that the ship is part of the
owners economic activities established in Norway and that the ship
is operated from Norway.

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 Genuine link

o Why genuine link? UNCLOS Art.

91
o Genuine link on the basis of
ownership
o Genuine link on the basis of the
crew

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 Jurisdiction

o The international scope of

legislation
o Choice of law
o Recognition
o Jurisdiction in a technical sense

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 Jurisdiction in a technical
sense

o Legislation (prescriptive
jurisdiction)
o Enforcement
o Court

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 Legislation (prescriptive
jurisdiction)

o Crew
o Pollution
o Safety
o Boycott

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 Enforcement

o Internal waters
o Territorial Sea
o Contiguous zones
o Continental Shelf
o Port state jurisdiction

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 Court jurisdiction

o Forum
o Ordinary forum
o Arrest forum
o Forum clauses
o The starting point
o Mandatory legislation, NMC 310 and
Rt. 1989.208
o Anti-suit injunctions

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 Choice of law

o Relationship between court

jurisdiction and choice of law
o Application of HVR
o Application of the law of liens and
mortgages

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