Merchant Shipping(Liner Conferences) Act 1982

The rules of procedure annexed to the present Convention shall be considered as model rules for the guidance of conciliators. The conciliators may, by mutual consent, use, supplement or amend the rules contained in the annex or formulate their own rules of procedure to the extent that such supplementary, amended or other rules are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Code.

3

If the parties agree that it may be in the interest of achieving an expeditious and inexpensive solution of the conciliation proceedings, they may mutually agree to rules of procedure which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Code.

4

The conciliators shall formulate their recommendation by consensus or failing that shall decide by majority vote.

5

The conciliation proceedings shall finish and the recommendation of the conciliators shall be delivered not later than six months from the date on which the conciliators are appointed, except in the cases referred to in article 23, paragraph 4(e), (f), and (g), for which the time limits in article 14, paragraph 1 and article 16, paragraph 4 shall be valid. The period of six months may be extended by agreement of the parties.

C. INSTITUTIONAL MACHINERY

Article 46

1

Six months before the entry into force of the present Convention, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall, subject to the approval of the General Assembly of the United Nations, and taking into account the views expressed by the Contracting Parties, appoint a Registrar, who may be assisted by such additional staff as may be necessary for the performance of the functions listed in article 46, paragraph 2. Administrative services for the Registrar and his assistants shall be provided by the United Nations Office at Geneva.

2

The Registrar shall perform the following functions in consultation with the Contracting Parties as appropriate:

• (a) Maintain the list of conciliators of the international panel of conciliators and regularly inform the Contracting Parties of the composition of the panel;

• (b) Provide the names and addresses of the conciliators to the parties concerned on request;

• (c) Receive and maintain copies of requests for conciliation, replies, recommendation, acceptances, or rejections, including reasons therefor;

• (d) Furnish on request, and at their cost, copies of recommendations and reasons for rejection the shippers’ organizations, conferences and Governments, subjects to the provisions of article 40;

• (e) Make available information of a non-confidential nature on completed conciliation cases, and without attribution to the parties concerned, for the purposes of preparation of material for the Review Conference referred to in article 52; and

• (f) The other functions prescribed for the Registrar in article 26, paragraph 1(c) and article 30, paragraphs 2 and 3.

Article 47 Implementation

1

Each Contracting Party shall take such legislative or other measures as may be necessary to implement the present Convention.

2

Each Contracting Party shall communicate to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall be the depositary, the text of the legislative or other measures which it has taken in order to implement the present Convention.

Article 48 Signature, Ratification, Acceptance, Approval and Accession

1

The present Convention shall remain open for signature as from 1 July 1974 until and including 30 June 1975 at United Nations Headquarters and shall thereafter remain open for accession.

2

All States are entitled to become Contracting Parties to the present Convention by:

• (a) Signature subject to and followed by ratification, acceptance or approval; or

• (b) Signature without reservation as to ratification, acceptance or approval; or

• (c) Accession.

3

Ratification, acceptance, approval or accession shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument to this effect with the depositary.

Article 49 Entry Into Force

1

The present Convention shall enter into force six months after the date on which not less than 24 States, the combined tonnage of which amounts to at least 25 per cent of world tonnage, have become Contracting Parties to it in accordance with article 48. For the purpose of the present article the tonnage shall be deemed to be that contained inLloyd’s Register of Shipping—Statistical Tables 1973,table 2 “World Fleets—Analysis by Principal Types”, in respect to general cargo (including passenger/cargo) ships and container (fully cellular) ships, exclusive of the United States reserve fleet and the American and Canadian Great Lakes fleets.

2

For each State which thereafter ratifies, accepts, approves or accedes to it, the present Convention shall come into force six months after deposit by such State of the appropriate instrument.

3

Any State which becomes a Contracting Party to the present Convention after the entry into force of an amendment shall, failing an expression of a different intention by that State:

• (a) Be considered as a Party to the present Convention as amended; and

• (b) Be considered as a Party to the unamended Convention in relation to any Party to the present Convention not bound by the amendment.

Article 50 Denunciation

1

The present Convention may be denounced by any Contracting Party at any time after the expiration of a period of two years from the date on which the Convention has entered into force.

2

Denunciation shall be notified to the depositary in writing, and shall take effect one year, or such longer period as may be specified in the instrument of denunciation, after the date of receipt by the depository.

Article 51 Amendments

1

Any Contracting Party may propose one or more amendments to the present Convention by communicating the amendments to the depositary. The depositary shall circulate such amendments among the Contracting Parties, for their acceptance, and among States entitled to become Contracting Parties to the present Convention which are not Contracting Parties, for their information.

2

Each proposed amendment circulated in accordance with article 51, paragraph 1 shall be deemed to have been accepted if no Contracting Party communicates an objection thereto to the depository within 12 months following the date of its circulation by the depositary. If a Contracting Party communicates an objection to the proposed amendment, such amendment shall not be considered as accepted and shall not be put into effect.

3

If no objection has been communicated, the amendment shall enter into force for all Contracting Parties six months after the expiry date of the period of 12 months referred to in article 51, paragraph 2.

Article 52 Review Conferences

1

A Review Conference shall be convened by the depositary five years from the date on which the present Convention comes into force to review the working of the Convention, with particular reference to its implementation, and to consider and adopt appropriate amendments.

2

The depository shall, four years from the date on which the present Convnetion comes into force, seek the views of all States entitled to attend the Review Conference and shall, on the basis of the views received, prepare and circulate a draft agenda as well as amendments proposed for consideration by the Conference.

3

Further review conferences shall be similarly convened every five years, or at any time after the first Review Conference, at the request of one-third of the Contracting Parties to the present Convention, unless the first Review Conference decides otherwise.

4

Notwithstanding the provisions of article 52, paragraph 1, if the present Convention has not entered into force five years from the date of the adoption of the Final Act of the United Nations Conference of Plenipotentiaries on a Code of Conduct for Liner Conferences, a Review Conference shall, at the request of one-third of the States entitled to become Contracting Parties to the present Convention, be convened by the Secretary-General of the United Nations, subject to the approval of the General Assembly, in order to review the provisions of the Convention and its annex and to consider and adopt appropriate amendments.

Article 53 Functions of the Depository

1

The depository shall notify the signatory and acceding States of:

• (a) Signatures, ratifications, acceptances, approvals and accessions in accordance with article 48;

• (b) The date on which the present Convention enters into force in accordance with article 49;

• (c) Denunciations of the present Convention in accordance with article 50;

• (d) Reservations to the present Convention and the withdrawal of reservations;

• (e) The text of the legislative or other measures which each Contracting Party has taken in order to implement the present Convention in accordance with article 47;

• (f) Proposed amendments and objections to proposed amendments in accordance with article 51; and

• (g) Entry into force of amendments in accordance with article 51, paragraph 3.

2

The depository shall also undertake such actions as are necessary under article 52.

Article 54 Authentic Texts—Deposit

ANNEX TO THE CONVENTION — MODEL RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR INTERNATIONAL MANDATORY CONCILIATION

Rule 1

1

Any party wishing to institute conciliation proceedings under the Code shall address a request to that effect in writing, accompanied by a statement of claim to the other party, and copied to the Registrar.

2

The statement of claim shall:

• (a) Designate precisely each party to the dispute and state the address of each;

• (b) Contain a summary statement of pertinent facts, the issues in dispute and the claimant’s proposal for the settlement of the dispute;

• (c) State whether an oral hearing is desired and, if so, and to the extent then known, the names and addresses of persons to give evidence, including experts’ evidence, for the claimant;

• (d) Be accompanied by such supporting documentation and relevant agreements and arrangements entered into by the parties as the claimant may consider necessary at the time of making the claim;

• (e) Indicate the number of conciliators required, any proposal concerning the appointment of conciliators, or the name of the conciliator appointed by the claimant in accordance with article 32, paragraph 2; and

• (f) Contain proposals, if any, regarding rules of procedure.

3

The statement of claim shall be dated and shall be signed by the party.

Rule 2

1

If the respondent decides to reply to the claim, he shall, within 30 days following the date of his receipt of the statement of claim, transmit a reply to the other party and copied to the Registrar.

2

The reply shall:

• (a) Contain a summary statement of pertinent facts opposed to the contentions in the statement of claim, the respondent’s proposal, if any, for the settlement of the dispute and any remedy claimed by him with a view to the settlement of the dispute;

• (b) State whether an oral hearing is desired and, if so, and to the extent then known, the names and addresses of persons to give evidence, including experts’ evidence, for the respondent;

• (c) Be accompanied by such supporting documentation and relevant agreements and arrangements entered into by the parties as the respondent may consider necessary at the time of making the reply;

• (d) Indicate the number of conciliators required, any proposal concerning the appointment of conciliators, or the name of the conciliator appointed by the respondent in accordance with article 32, paragraph 2; and

• (e) Contain proposals, if any, regarding rules of procedure.

3

The reply shall be dated and shall be signed by the party.

Rule 3

1

Any person or other interest desiring to participate in conciliation proceedings under article 34 shall transmit a written request to the parties to the dispute, with a copy to the Registrar.

2

If participation in accordance with (a) of article 34 is desired, the request shall set forth the grounds therefor, including the information required under rule 1, paragraph 2 (a), (b) and (d).

3

If participation in accordance with (b) of article 34 is desired, the request shall state the grounds therefor and which of the original parties would be supported.

4

Any objection to a request for joinder by such a party shall be sent by the objecting party, with a copy to the other party, within seven days of receipt of the request.

5

In the event that two or more proceedings are consolidated, subsequent requests for third-party participation shall be transmitted to all parties concerned, each of which may object in accordance with the present rule.

Rule 4

By agreement between the parties to the dispute, on motion by either party, and after affording the parties an opportunity of being heard, the conciliators may order the consolidation or separation of all or any claims then pending between the same parties.

Rule 5

1

Any party may challenge a conciliator where circumstances exist that cause justifiable doubts as to his independence.

2

Notice of challenge, stating reasons therefor, should be made prior to the date of the closing of the proceedings, before the conciliators have rendered their recommendation. Any such challenge shall be heard promptly and shall be determined by majority vote of the conciliators in the first instance, as a preliminary point, in cases where more than one conciliator has been appointed. The decision in such cases shall be final.

3

A conciliator who has died, resigned, become incapacitated or disqualified shall be replaced promptly.

4

Proceedings interrupted in this way shall continue from the point where they were interrupted, unless it is agreed by the parties or ordered by the conciliators that a review or rehearing of any oral testimony take place.

Rule 6

Rule 7

1

The conciliators shall receive and consider all written statements, documents affidavits, publications or any other evidence, including oral evidence, which may be submitted to them by or on behalf of any of the parties, and shall give such weight thereto as in their judgement such evidence merits.

2

• (a) Each party may submit to the conciliators any material it considers relevant, and at the time of such submission shall deliver certified copies to any other party to the proceedings, which party shall be given a reasonable opportunity to reply thereto;

• (b) The conciliators shall be the sole judges of the relevance and materiality of the evidence submitted to them by the parties;

• (c) The conciliators may ask the parties to produce such additional evidence as they may deem necessary to an understanding and determination of the dispute, provided that, if such additional evidence is produced, the other parties to the proceeding shall have a reasonable opportunity to comment thereon.

Rule 8

1

Whenever a period of days for the doing of any act is provided for in the Code or in these rules, the day from which the period begins to run shall not be counted, and the last day of the period shall be counted, except where that last day is a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday at the place of conciliation, in which case the last day shall be the next business day.

2

When the time provided for is less than seven days, intermediate Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays shall be excluded from the computation.

Rule 9

Rule 10

1

The conciliators shall fix the order of business and, unless otherwise agreed, the date and hour of each session.

2

Unless the parties otherwise agree, the proceedings shall take place in private.

3

The conciliators shall specifically inquire of all the parties whether they have any further evidence to submit before declaring the proceedings closed, and a noting thereof shall be recorded.

Rule 11

Rule 12

Rule 13

Editorial notes

Part Two

Desiring to improve the liner conference system,

In international mandatory conciliation the appropriate authorities of a Contracting Party shall, if they so request, participate in the conciliation proceedings in support of a party being a national of that Contracting Party, or in support of a party having a dispute arising in the context of the foreign trade of that Contracting Party. The appropriate authority may alternatively act as an observer in such conciliation proceedings.