E-News for June 30, 2009

Forwarderlaw E-news: June 2009

Below please find summaries of e-news articles posted during the month of June. As always, these and all past articles are available in our searchable, on-line database.

Service improvements at Forwarderlaw

Forwarderlaw is in the midst of changing hosts; in the intervening period we have experienced some service disruptions, including incomplete access to our mailing list. We are confident that these issues will be resolved soon and we will be back in mid-summer with new and improved service!

As always, these and all past articles are available in our searchable, on-line database.

Airfreight Cartel: Where does the Litigation Stand Now?

Editor Emeritus Peter Jones provides an important update on the litigation that has arisen as a result of anti-competitive practices by several global air cargo carriers. Emerald Supplies, an importer of cut flowers, brought a claim against British Airways and others for damages caused by the cartel, relying substantially (in terms of liability) on their guilty pleas in regulatory anti-trust proceedings in several jurisdictions. They also attempted to add a “representative claim” (popularly known as a “class action”) on the part of 178 additional potential claimants. The update focuses on a recent interlocutory decision of the High Court that has dealt a set-back to the representative claim.
http://www.forwarderlaw.com/library/view.php?article_id=559

Rotterdam Rules: Part I

In the first of a three-part series on the Rotterdam Rules, General Editor Gavin Magrath provides a brief survey of the 20th century history of international law on the carriage of goods by sea, followed by a description of the negotiation and ratification process that will determined whether the new Rules will come into widespread use, like the Hague-Visby Rules, or, like the Hamburg Rules, pass unnoticed by most of the world’s trade. As Bob Marley said: “If you know your history, the you would know where you’re coming from.”
http://www.forwarderlaw.com/library/view.php?article_id=562

Green House Gases and Climate Change – a New Concern for the International Transport Industry?

According to a recent UNCTAD report, international shipping contributed 2.7% of 2007 global CO2 emissions – an amount greater than that of either Canada or Germany, and a figure nearly double that of the most recent comprehensive survey (for the year 1996). Peter Jones describes recent developments:
http://www.forwarderlaw.com/library/view.php?article_id=560

Maritime Business Conference Update: “Bill of Lading in Progress” – Odessa

Our Ukraine correspondent Arther Nitsevych provides this report on the recent conference co hosted by International Law Offices in Odessa, Ukraine, which included speakers from Russia, Germany, France, Great Britain, Spain, and Turkey, among others.
http://www.forwarderlaw.com/library/view.php?article_id=568

General

Previous e-news summaries and all past articles are available and searchable on-line at
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