The Fifth Edition of Templeman on Marine Insurance has finally been published after a gap of some 47 years since its Fourth Edition. The delay is hardly explicable given that Templeman has always been regarded as the authoritative text in its field since it was first published in 1903, and that demand for it resulted in no less than 13 reprints of the Fourth Edition, the last being as recent as 1973. Doubtless the volume of decisions since 1934, the increasing standardisation of clauses and, latterly, the appearance of a serious competitor in the shape of Professor Ivamy’s Marine Insurance have finally led to the production of a new edition.

The result is effectively a new work rather than, as the author modestly claims, a mere revision. The practical nature of previous editions has been retained, the text consisting largely of the Marine Insurance Act examined section by section and accompanied by detailed commentary incorporating, where appropriate, standard forms of contract. The result is a clear and readily comprehensible account of the law of marine insurance as it operates in practice. Perhaps the most important factor leading to the clarity of this work is Mr Lambeth’s careful selection of judicial authority. While the reviewer would not pretend to agree with every choice of case, the author has not fallen into the trap of trying to provide exhaustive coverage of the decisions of the courts but instead has opted for in-depth treatment of the most important and, where possible, modern, authority. The reader is thus easily able to comprehend the relevant principles without having to disentangle them from a morass of confused and often exceptional factual situations.

Other features of this book which render it suitable for the use of practitioners are the use of authorities from other common law jurisdictions footnoted where English authority is scanty or unsatisfactory, detailed examples and analysis of cases in areas such as average and subrogation which serve to clarify what have been traditionally regarded as rather baffling concepts (by lawyers at least), comparisons with the general law of insurance where appropriate and lengthy appendices containing the relevant legislation, codes of practice and clauses in general use.

Overall, then, the new edition of Templeman is a long-awaited and welcome addition to the literature in this field, and will no doubt reassert its reputation as the