{"id":54244,"date":"2025-07-10T13:13:18","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T07:43:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/?p=54244"},"modified":"2025-07-10T13:57:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-10T08:27:15","slug":"admiralty-jurisdiction-settlement-of-maritime-claims-act-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/admiralty-jurisdiction-settlement-of-maritime-claims-act-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Admiralty (Jurisdiction &#038; Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Admiralty (Jurisdiction &amp; Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017 Latest News<\/b><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Kerala High Court recently ordered the conditional \u201carrest\u201d of Liberian container ship MSC Akiteta II, after the Kerala government filed an admiralty suit in the court under Section 4 of the Admiralty (Jurisdiction and Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>About Admiralty (Jurisdiction &amp; Settlement of Maritime Claims) Act, 2017<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Act <\/span><b>consolidates the existing laws<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> relating to the admiralty jurisdiction, legal proceedings in connection with the vessels, arrest, detention and sale of the vessel and other matters that are connected or incidental to the admiralty jurisdiction.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Act r<\/span><b>epeals the following British-era admiralty laws <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on civil matters:<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Admiralty Court Act, 1861;<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act, 1890;<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Colonial Courts of Admiralty (India) Act, 1891; and<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The provisions of the Letters Patent, 1865, insofar as it applies to the admiralty jurisdiction of the Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras High Courts.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Applicability of the Act<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Act applies to <\/span><b>every vessel, irrespective of the place of residence or domicile of the owner.<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>Exception to the Applicability: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Act shall not apply to the following vessels-<\/span>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Inland vessel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> defined in clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Inland Vessels Act, 1917;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A<\/span><b> vessel under construction<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that has not been launched unless it is notified by the Central Government to be a vessel for the purposes of the Act;<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A <\/span><b>warship, naval auxiliary, or other vessel owned or operated by the Central or a State Government<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and used for any non-commercial purpose; and<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Foreign vessel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> which is <\/span><b>used for any non-commercial purpose<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as may be <\/span><b>notified by the Central Government.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Admiralty Jurisdiction<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Act conferred admiralty jurisdiction <\/span><b>to eight High <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">including the High Court of <\/span><b>Calcutta, Bombay, Madras, Karnataka, Gujarat, Orissa, Kerala and Hyderabad.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The jurisdiction of the High Courts in respect of all maritime claims <\/span><b>be exercisable over the waters up to and including the territorial waters <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">of their respective jurisdictions.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Maritime Claims<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The High Court having admiralty jurisdiction is empowered to determine any question against any vessel relating to a <\/span><b>maritime claim arising out of any<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">dispute regarding possession or <\/span><b>ownership of a vessel;<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>loss or damage caused<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by the operation of a vessel;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><b>loss of life or personal injury <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">occurring whether on land or on water, in <\/span><b>direct connection with the operation of a vessel;<\/b><\/li>\n<li><b>loss or damage<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to or<\/span><b> in connection with any goods;<\/b><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">agreement relating to the carriage of goods or passengers on board a vessel, whether contained in a charter party or otherwise;<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">agreement relating to the <\/span><b>use or hire of the vessel,<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> whether contained in a charter party or otherwise, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2><b>Jurisdiction over Vessels (Arrest of Vessels) and Persons<\/b><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Courts with admiralty jurisdiction exercise their authority <\/span><b>over both vessels <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">within their territorial waters <\/span><b>(jurisdiction in rem)<\/b> <b>and persons within their territory (jurisdiction in personam).\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>usual practice<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> followed by the courts having admiralty jurisdiction to secure the maritime claim is <\/span><b>to arrest the vessel.\u00a0<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>main purpose for the arrest<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of the vessel is to <\/span><b>obtain the security for the satisfaction of the judgment.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thus, the High Court having admiralty jurisdiction may order arrest of any vessel <\/span><b>if the High Court is satisfied that<\/b>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the <\/span><b>owner <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">of the vessel at the time when maritime claim arose <\/span><b>is liable for the claim;<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the <\/span><b>claim is based on a mortgage or a charge of the vessel;<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the<\/span><b> claim is related to the possession or ownership of the vessel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further, a <\/span><b>claimant<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> seeking the arrest of a vessel may be <\/span><b>required to furnish an unconditional undertaking <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">on the terms determined by the High Court <\/span><b>to secure the defendant from any loss or damage that may result due to such arrest<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (for example, if the arrest is wrongful or unjustified). <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: justify;\">The Act <b style=\"font-size: inherit;\">also provides that the High Court ordering the sale of a vessel<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> can <\/span><b style=\"font-size: inherit;\">determine any questions relating to the title to the proceeds of the sale.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Source<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">: <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/ship-arrested-after-kerala-claims-damages-how-do-admiralty-suits-work-10114760\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">IE<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Admiralty Act, 2017 consolidates laws on admiralty jurisdiction, vessel-related legal proceedings, arrest, detention, sale of vessels, and related matters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":54251,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1441,21,22,23],"class_list":{"0":"post-54244","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-upsc-prelims-current-affairs","8":"tag-admiralty-jurisdiction-settlement-of-maritime-claims-act","9":"tag-prelims-pointers","10":"tag-upsc-current-affairs","11":"tag-upsc-prelims-current-affairs","12":"no-featured-image-padding"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54244\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54251"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vajiramandravi.com\/current-affairs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}