Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly
SWEDISH MARITIME LAW 1989–1995
Hugo Tiberg*
I. LEGISLATION
A. The Maritime Code (MC)
1. A new Code (1994:1009)
In 1994, the Nordic Maritime Codes from the 1890s were replaced, except for Iceland, by a new MC. Only the chapter on carriage of goods was really revised, however, while the others either remained wholly or practically unchanged under new section numbers or consisted of other legislation, such as the ship arrest rules, brought into the Code’s framework. The new carriage of goods chapter has been severely criticized in Sweden1.
While previously the Nordic Codes had a common chapter and section numbering, they have come to differ in the new Codes. Denmark and Norway have chosen a running section numbering throughout the Code, while Finland and Sweden have settled for a separate numbering within each chapter. In the translation available of the Swedish Code (see III (A)(1)) the Danish-Norwegian numbering is inserted in brackets in the carriage of goods chapter and for other chapters is available through a special table.
A notable feature of the carriage of goods rules is that they incorporate a great deal of the Hamburg Rules although the four countries Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden continue to adhere to the Hague-Visby Rules.
* Professor of Maritime Law at the Stockholm University. Until 1988, an annual chronicle on Swedish maritime law was published in the Yearbook of Maritime Law. When that series was discontinued, the texts continued to be published, in translation, in the Spanish Anuario de Derecho Maritimo and in the Droit Maritime Français. It is hoped with the present summary to fill up the gap since 1988, and that presentation can continue annually in this Quarterly.
Abbreviations: JT Juridisk Tidskrift vid Stockholms Universitet (Law Journal at Stockholm University, Stockholm), ND Nordiske Domme i Sjöfartsanliggender (Scandinavian Judgments in Maritime Cases, Oslo), NJA Nytt Juridiskt Arkiv (Swedish Supreme Court Cases, Stockholm), PXTR På Kryss & Till Rors (Journal of the Swedish Cruising Club, Stockholm), RfH Rättsfall från Hovrätterna (Cases on Appeal, Stockholm), SvJT Svensk Juristtidning (Swedish Law Journal, Stockholm) District Court is abbreviated DC, Appeal Court AC and the Supreme Court of Sweden SC.
The terminology of this presentation follows that of Swedish Law, 1st edn, (Juritförlaget Stockholm 1994) and the explanatory notes in the Swedish Maritime Code (Sjö och transporträtt No. 16, Stockholm 1995). Cases not reported in recognized journals are cited by the court name and case number, and reported cases are referred to by the recognized report name. CD (certiorari denied) indicates a matter brought to the Supreme Court but not admitted for appeal. The term “fines” indicates so-called day fines adjusted to a convicted person’s income, while “fine” in the singular indicates a monetary fine.
1. See under Bibliography below and [1995] LMCLQ 527, [1996] LMCLQ 413.
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