Unmanned Ships And The Law

This book considers the law relating to the legal aspects of unmanned ships. The author, a doyen of shipping and insurance law from Turkey, delves into the current international legal regime and examines the probable impact of unmanned ships on liability and carriage of goods in a wide-ranging manner. He examines both the legal aspects and technological peculiarities of unmanned ships, as well as contemplating terminological and linguistic questions, to find out whether they can be compatible with the current legal regime applicable to ships in general, while considering alternatives to enable their successful use in the near future. Unmanned Ships and the Law is therefore important not just for legal practitioners and academics in shipping and insurance but all those in related industries of shipbuilding, computer technology and communications.

Interest in autonomous ships has grown exponentially over the past few years. Whereas a few years ago, the prospect of unmanned and autonomous vessels sailing on the seas was considered unrealistic, the debate now centers on when and in what format and pace the development will take place. Law has a key role to play in this development and legal obstacles are often singled out as principal barriers to the rapid introduction of new technologies in shipping. Within a few years, autonomous ships have turned from a non-issue to one of the main regulatory topics being addressed by the International Maritime Organization. However, the regulatory discussion is still in its infancy, and while many new questions have been raised, few answers have been provided to them to date. Increased automation of tasks that have traditionally been undertaken by ships' crews raises interesting legal questions across the whole spectrum of maritime law. The first of its kind, this book explores the issue of autonomous ships from a wide range of legal perspectives, including both private law and public law at international and national level, making available cutting-edge research which will be of significant interest to researchers in maritime law. Chapter 3 of this book is freely available as a downloadable Open Access PDF at http://www.taylorfrancis.com under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial (CC-BY-NC) 4.0 license.

This book examines law and governance implications in relation to maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS). Adopting a multi-disciplinary approach, it focuses on a wide array of timely, topical and thorny issues, including naval warfare and security, seaworthiness and techno-regulatory assessments, global environmental change, autonomous passenger transportation, as well as liability and insurance. It also considers selected national and regional developments. The book provides an insight into the role of innovation-diplomacy as the driving force that could expedite the transition from automation to autonomy. After navigating through the complex law and governance landscape, it concludes by assessing critical findings for further consideration. The book will appeal to scholars and students of maritime technology, law and governance. Chapter 11 and Chapter 18 are available open access under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License via link.springer.com.

This collection of essays critically evaluates the legal framework necessary for the use of autonomous ships in international waters. The work is divided into three parts: Part 1 evaluates how far national shipping regulation, and the public international law background that lies behind it, may need modification and updating to accommodate the use of autonomous ships on international voyages. Part 2 deals with private law and insurance issues such as collision and pollution liability, salvage, limitation of liability and allocation of risk between carrier and cargo interests. Part 3 analyses international convention regimes dealing with maritime safety and other matters, arguing for specific changes in the existing conventions such as SOLAS and MARPOL, which would provide the international framework that is necessary for putting autonomous ships into commercial use. The book also takes the view that amendment of international conventions is important in the case of liability issues, arguing that leaving such matters to national law, particularly issues concerning product liability, could not only restrict or hinder the availability of liability insurance but also hamper the development of technology in this field. Written by internationally-known experts in their respective areas, the book offers a holistic approach to the debate on autonomous ships and makes a timely and important contribution to the literature.

New Technologies, Artificial Intelligence and Shipping Law in the 21st Century consists of edited versions of the papers delivered at the Institute of International Shipping and Trade Law’s 14th International Colloquium at Swansea Law School in September 2018. Written by a combination of top academics and highly experienced legal practitioners, these papers have been carefully co-ordinated to give the reader a first-class insight into the issues surrounding new technology and shipping. The book is set out in three parts: Part I offers a detailed and critical analysis of issues that are emerging, and those that are likely to emerge, from the use of advanced computer technology, particularly at the contracting process and in the context of issuing trading documents. Part 2 focusses on artificial intelligence and discusses the contemporary issues that will emerge once autonomous ships and similar crafts are put to use in the world’s oceans. As well as this, the legal impact of ports utilising artificial intelligence and computer technology will also be considered. Part 3 analyses how the increasing use of legal technology is changing insurance underwriting and shipping litigation. An invaluable guide to the recent technological advances in shipping, this book is vital reading for both professional and academic readers.

Unmanned ships and autonomous ships are quickly becoming a reality, making shipping safer and more efficient. However, traditional tasks and functions are becoming blurred as new technology changes how the unique needs of different sectors are met. In addition to large vessels dedicated to the transport of goods and cargos across the oceans, major efforts are underway towards the automation of small coastal shipping that includes ferries, tugboats, supply and service vessels, and barges. Automated vehicles are also replacing conventional ships for inspecting and servicing pipelines, drilling platforms, wind farms and other offshore installations. Automated shipping is explored in terms of economics, technology, safety and the environment under the broad themes of ship design and engineering, command and control, navigation, communications, security, regulatory issues, and training. This includes initiatives for autonomous shipping as well as civilian implications of military ship automation programs. This book is primarily for maritime professionals, regulatory authorities, insurers, and environmental groups. It also suits undergraduate students involved in deck officer training, and graduate students and academics involved in research in ship design, operations and management.

This edited volume brings together contributions from experienced academics and practitioners in shipping law to consider the crucial subject of remedies in shipping litigation. The collection takes a close look at the established principles and recent legal, commercial and technical developments in the area of remedies in shipping law. It is divided into three parts. The first part focuses on fundamental common law principles concerning damages, including approaches to topics such as damages for delay and what happens when a charter is thrown over early; the reflective loss rule; mitigation; and the problem of cryptocurrency. The second part considers technology and how it affects contracts and remedies, including the use of new technologies and the development of new liability regimes. The third part explores contractual remedies other than simple compensatory damages, considering issues such as limitation of liability, punitive damages, specific remedies, third party claims and liabilities, and anti-suit injunctions. Written for lawyers and administrators not only in England and Wales but worldwide (especially Germany, Switzerland, Greece, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, China, Hong Kong, Singapore and India), the book will also be of interest to specialist maritime law firms in the USA. It will be a valuable addition to specialist law libraries within Europe and the USA, and to university libraries where maritime and shipping law are taught as specialist subjects.