Maritime Carrier's Liability for Loss of or Damage to Goods under the Hague Rules, Visby Rules and the Hamburg Rules, Compared with His Liability as an Operator under the Relevant Rules of the International Multimodal Transport Convention

The system of the carrier's liability, in respect of carriage of goods, is a very controversial issue which raises many difficulties in solving the problems thereto related, whether in national laws or in international Conventions. The present thesis, dealing with the carrier's liability, consists of five chapters and final conclusions. The first four chapters concentrate, theoretically, practically and in detail on analysing and comparing the liability regimes in relation to the carrier's liability under the Hague/Visby Rules and the Hamburg Rules, in order to ascertain which is more conducive to international certainty and uniformity. The Hague/Visby Rules and the Hamburg Rules have played a vital role in the international transport industry. They are correspondingly discussed in the thesis. Chapter five is devoted to discussion of the liability of the multimodal transport operator as one of the most important parts of the International Multimodal Transport Convention (1980). The chapter also evaluates the situation when, in the future, the Convention comes into force. In its structure the thesis is divided as follows; chapter one deals with a brief history and the scope of application of the Rules. The liability of the carrier and the limitation of the carrier's liability are considered in chapters two and three. Chapter four deals with the procedures of action for lost or damaged cargo. The liability of the multimodal transport operator for loss or damage to the goods under the 1980 United Nations Multimodal Transport of Goods Convention is dealt with in chapter five