Maritime law has been a strong and successful formative influence on the common law in England for over 100 years and continues to be so. It leads to a rather strict commercial law which is said to create predictability for the business community. There is a tendency to separate off consumer disputes by means of statutes. But even in general commercial law there may be scope for slightly more flexibility. This could be obtained by development of the law as to implied terms and by the use of equitable doctrines.

In his Wilberforce lecture given in 19981 Lord Goff of Chieveley said that:

For the English the characteristic commercial contract is a contract for the carriage of goods by sea.

This may, with respect, be overstated; one wonders how many small town and country solicitors, asked to advise on contract disputes, immediately search in their minds for analogies with bills of lading contracts and charterparties, or indeed how many of such practitioners have or need any knowledge of those topics whatever. Certainly in other countries the statement might cause surprise; Lord Goff reported that in response he was told that to a German lawyer the typical contract would be one for the sale of land, and examination of reports of other common law jurisdictions suggests that other contracts such as those for financing on the security of chattels are also prominent—Australia is an example.2