London Arbitration 6/05

Time charter - Whether Hague Rules incorporated

The vessel grounded off Singapore in the course of a time-charter trip from England. The charter was on the NYPE form as amended. The owners wished to rely on the defence of negligent navigation under Article IV Rule 2(a) of the Hague Rules. There was a dispute as to whether the Hague Rules had been incorporated into the charter, and this point was determined as a preliminary issue.