Lloyd's Maritime and Commercial Law Quarterly
LOF SALVAGE ARBITRATIONS: PUBLICATION OF AWARDS, AND APPEALS
Lloyd’s Open Form of Salvage Agreement, in relation to the first tier arbitration, refers at each point to the “Arbitrator” and, in relation to an appeal, refers at each point to the “Arbitrator(s)”. That is as far as LOF 1980 goes to indicate that the Committee of Lloyd’s have in mind the possibility of the appeal tribunal consisting of more than one arbitrator; there is no specific provision in the standard form agreement concerning the number of appeal arbitrators. At the present time there is a serious practical limitation on there being more than one appeal arbitrator on any LOF appeal—there is only one person, Gerald Darling, Q.C.—whom Lloyd’s have appointed to the Panel of Appeal Arbitrators.
There are some material and obvious differences between salvage arbitrations and other forms of litigation, the first of which is that in one important respect—liability—there is no dispute. It is accepted that the contractor (the salvor) has rendered salvage services and, assuming there is a “cure” (as there generally is if the matter reaches arbitration), that he is entitled to an award for his services. What is in issue is the value of the services rendered to the property which is salved; in considering that, a number of well recognized factors are taken into account. Some of the principal of these factors are also frequently not in dispute, such as the value of the salved property and, if claimed, the salvor’s expenses. Thus, salvage arbitrations commonly reduce to the salvor and ship and cargo arguing the degree of
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