The Merchant Shipping Act 1988 (Cayman Islands) Order 1988

Made: 26th October 1988

Laid before Parliament: 3rd November 1988

Coming into force: 24th November 1988

At the Court at Buckingham Palace, the 26th day of October 1988 Present, The Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty in Council

Her Majesty, in exercise of the powers conferred upon Her by section 56 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988[^f00001] and of all other powers enabling Her in that behalf, is pleased, by and with the advice of Her Privy Council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, as follows:

1

This Order may be cited as the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 (Cayman Islands) Order 1988 and shall come into force on 24th November 1988.

2

Subject to the modifications specified in Schedule 1 to this Order, the provisions of sections 1—8, 30—32, 34—35, 44, 46, 48, 50, 51, 54, 57 and 58 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 and Schedule 4 to that Act shall extend to the Cayman Islands as part of the law thereof.

3

Subject to the modifications specified in Schedule 1 to this Order, Schedule 5 to the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 in so far as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894[^f00002] the Merchant Shipping Act 1970[^f00003] and the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971[^f00004] shall extend to the Cayman Islands as part of the law thereof.

4

Subject to the modifications specified in Schedule 1 to this Order, Schedule 6 to the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 in so far as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 and the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 shall extend to the Cayman Islands as part of the law thereof.

5

Subject to the modifications specified in Schedule 1 to this Order, Schedule 7 to the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 in so far as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894, the Merchant Shipping Act 1970, the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 and the Merchant Shipping Act 1974[^f00005] shall extend to the Cayman Islands as part of the law thereof.

6

Subject to the modifications specified in Schedule 2 to this Order, section 10 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 and Schedule 1 to that Act shall extend to the Cayman Islands as part of the law thereof.

7

The provisions as extended and modified shall come into force on such day as the Governor in Council may appoint by order, and different days may be appointed for different provisions or for different purposes of the same provision.

SCHEDULE 1 — MODIFICATIONS IN THE EXTENSION TO THE CAYMAN ISLANDS OF SECTIONS 1—8, 30—32, 34—35, 44, 46, 48, 50, 51, 54, 57 AND 58 OF AND SCHEDULE 4 AND PARTS OF SCHEDULES 5, 6 AND 7 TO THE MERCHANT SHIPPING ACT 1988

General

1

Any reference to the Merchant Shipping Acts shall be construed as a reference to those Acts as they extend to the Cayman Islands and any reference to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 or to provisions thereof shall be construed as a reference to that Act or to those provisions as it extends or they extend to the Cayman Islands as amended by the Merchant Shipping (Applicable Conventions) Law 1987[^f00006]

2

In any case for the words “British Islands” or “British” there shall be substituted the words “Cayman Islands”, with the following exceptions:—

• (a) in section 1(1)(a) and (b);

• (b) in section 3(1)(a) to (e);

• (c) in the first case in which the word “British” occurs in paragraph 8 of Schedule 5 where it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1970;

• (d) in section 20(3)(a) of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 as substituted by paragraph 14 of Part I of Schedule 4 and in section 15(6)(a) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1974 as substituted by paragraph 15 of Part II of Schedule 4.

3

For any reference to the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen there shall be substituted a reference to the Registrar of Shipping.

4

In any case for the words “United Kingdom” there shall be substituted the words “Cayman Islands”, with the following exceptions:—

• (a) in section 3(1)(f) where, after the words “United Kingdom”, in both cases where they occur, there shall instead be substituted the words “or in the Cayman Islands”;

• (b) in section 20(3)(a) of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 as substituted by paragraph 14 of Part I of Schedule 4 and in section 15(6)(a) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1974 as substituted by paragraph 15 of Part II of Schedule 4.

5

For any reference to the “Secretary of State” or to the “Treasury” there shall be substituted a reference to the “Governor in Council”.

Fines

6

In section 5(6) for the words “the third level on the standard scale”, there shall be substituted the words “one thousand dollars”.

7

In section 8(1)(i) and in section 27(5)(a) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 as substituted by section 32 for the words “the statutory maximum”, there shall be substituted the words “five thousand dollars”.

8

In sections 30(4)(a) and 31(3)(a) and in section 10(6) of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 as amended by Schedule 5 for the words “£50,000”, there shall be substituted the words “one hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars”.

9

In section 35(3) for the words “£25,000”, in each case there shall be substituted the words “sixty-five thousand dollars”.

10

In section 44(3)(b) for the words “£1,000”, there shall be substituted the words “two thousand, five hundred dollars”.

Other Modifications

11

For section 2, there shall be substituted the following provision:—

(2) A ship shall be a Cayman Islands ship for the purposes of the Merchant Shipping Acts if the ship is registered in the Cayman Islands under Part I of the 1894 Act.

12

In section 3:

• (a) in subsection (2) the words “Subject to subsection (3) below,” shall be omitted; and

• (b) subsection (3) shall be omitted.

13

In section 4, subsections (6) and (8) shall be omitted.

14

In section 5:

• (a) subsection (3) shall be omitted; and

• (b) in subsection (4) for the words “registrar to whom the application is made”, “registrar of the ship’s port of registry” and “registrar in question” there shall be substituted in each case the words “Registrar of Shipping”.

15

In section 6, in subsections (2) and (3) for the words “registrars of British ships generally a direction requiring them” there shall be substituted in each case the words “the Registrar of Shipping a direction requiring him”.

16

In section 7:

• (a) in subsection (5) for the words “registrar of the ship’s port of registry” there shall be substituted the words “Registrar of Shipping”; and

• (b) in subsection (6) for the words “registrar of the ship’s former port of registry” there shall be substituted the words “Registrar of Shipping”.

17

In section 30(5)(a) the words “(or, in Scotland, which are libelled in the complaint, petition or indictment)” shall be omitted.

18

In sections 30(8) and 31(5) for all after the word “instituted” there shall be substituted in each case the words “except by or with the consent of the Attorney-General”.

19

In section 27(7) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 as substituted by section 32 for all after the words “such person” there shall be substituted the words “except by or with the consent of the Attorney-General”.

20

In section 34(2) for the references to Her Majesty and to an Order in Council there shall be substituted references to the Governor and to an order.

21

In section 44:

• (a) in subsection (4) for the words “magistrate’s court” and “clerk of the court”, there shall be substituted the words “court of summary jurisdiction” and “Clerk of the Courts” respectively; and

• (b) subsection (5) shall be omitted.

22

For section 48, there shall be substituted the following provision:

(48) Schedule 5 to this Act in so far as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894, the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 and the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 shall have effect.

23

In section 50:

• (a) in subsection (1) for the words “30, 31 and 33”, there shall be substituted the words “30 and 31”; and

• (b) in subsection (2) the words “or section 33(2)(a)(ii)” shall be omitted.

24

In section 54:

• (a) in subsections (1) and (2) the words “or II” shall be omitted in each case;

• (b) in subsection (2) the words “or registered fishing vessel” and the words between “served” and “on any” exclusive shall be omitted;

• (c) in subsection (3) the word “appropriate” shall be omitted and for the words “section 7 of the Interpretation Act 1978”, there shall be substituted the words “section 52 of the Interpretation Law”; and

• (d) in subsection (4) the definitions of “the appropriate register” and of “registered fishing vessel” and the words “or Part II of this Act” in the definition of “registered owner” shall be omitted.

25

In section 57:

• (a) in subsection (2) as it relates to the definition of “relevant overseas territory” for the words “any colony”, there shall be substituted the words “any other colony of the United Kingdom”, and the definition of “modifications” shall be omitted;

• (b) subsection (3) shall be omitted;

• (c) for subsection (4) there shall be substituted the following provision:—

(4) The Merchant Shipping Acts 1894 and 1970 shall have effect subject to the minor and consequential amendments specified in Schedule 6

• and

• (d) for subsection (5) there shall be substituted the following provision:—

(5) The Merchant Shipping Acts 1894, 1970 and 1974 and the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 are hereby repealed to the extent specified in the third column of Schedule 7.

26

In section 58:

• (a) subsections (2), (3) and (5) shall be omitted; and

• (b) in subsection (4) the words “The transitional provisions and savings contained in Schedule 8 to this Act shall have effect; and” and “made by statutory instrument” shall be omitted.

27

In Schedule 4 in section 1(8) of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 as substituted by paragraph 1 of Part I for the words between “Act” where it first appears and “1948” inclusive there shall be substituted the words “Law 1964”.

28

In Schedule 4 in section 4 of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 as substituted by paragraph 4 of Part I:

• (a) in subsection (2) the words “made by statutory instrument” shall be omitted; and

• (b) in subsection (4) the words “by statutory instrument” onwards shall be omitted.

29

In Schedule 4 in section 20 of the Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution) Act 1971 as substituted by paragraph 14 of Part I:

• (a) in subsection (1) for the definition of “the court” there shall be substituted the words

• “the court” means the Grand Court;

• (b) in subsection (3) there shall be inserted before paragraph (a) a paragraph as follows:—

(aa) in the case of the Cayman Islands, any area within the fishery limits set by the Cayman Islands Proclamation No 5 of 1977;

.[^f00007]

30

In Schedule 4 in section 1(6) of the Merchant Shipping Act 1974 as substituted by paragraph 15 of Part II there shall be inserted before paragraph (a) a paragraph as follows:—

(aa) in the case of the Cayman Islands, any area within the fishery limits set by the Cayman Islands Proclamation No 5 of 1977;

31

In Schedule 5 as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 paragraphs 2 to 12 shall be omitted.

32

In Schedule 5 as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 paragraph 3 shall be omitted.

33

In Schedule 6 as it relates to the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 paragraphs 2, 3 and 5(b) shall be omitted.

34

In the third column of Schedule 7:

• (a) in the entry relating to the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 all the references shall be omitted except that to section 695(2)(a), and there shall be added a reference to section 457;

• (b) in the entry relating to the Merchant Shipping Act 1970 the references to sections 42(2), 55 and 92 shall be omitted; and

• (c) in the entry relating to the Merchant Shipping Act 1974 the reference to section 23(2) shall be omitted.

SCHEDULE 2 — MODIFICATIONS IN THE EXTENSION TO THE CAYMAN ISLANDS OF SECTION 10 OF AND SCHEDULE 1 TO THE MERCHANT SHIPPING ACT 1988

1

In section 10:

• (a) for subsection (1) there shall be substituted the following provision:—

(10) (1) Part I of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 and Part II of the First Schedule thereto shall have effect as modified and set out in Schedule 1 to this Act.

• (b) in subsection (2):

• (i) for the words “1894 Act” and “United Kingdom” there shall be substituted respectively the words “Merchant Shipping Act 1894” and “Cayman Islands”; and

• (ii) paragraph (b) shall be omitted.

2

For Schedule 1 there shall be substituted the following provisions:

part i — registry

Procedure for Registration

Registrar of Shipping.

Register.

Survey and measurement of ship.

Marking of ship.

Application for registry.

Declaration of ownership on registry.

Evidence on first registry.

Entry of particulars in register.

Documents to be retained by Registrar of Shipping.

Port of registry.

Certificate of Registry

Certificate of registry.

Custody of certificate.

Penalty for use of improper certificate.

Power to grant new certificate.

Provision for loss of certificate.

Endorsement of change of ownership. Ownership on certificate.

Delivery up of certificate of ship lost or ceasing to be Cayman Islands owned.

Provisional certificate for ship becoming entitled to be registered while abroad.

Temporary passes in lieu of certificates of registry.

Transfers and Transmissions

Transfer of ships or shares.

Declaration of transfer.

Registry of transfer.

Transmission of property in ship on death, bankruptcy, marriage, etc.

Order for sale on transmission to unqualified person.

Transfer of ship or sale by order of court.

Power of court to prohibit transfer.

Mortgage of ship or share.

Entry of discharge of mortgage.

Priority of mortgages.

Mortgagee not treated as owner.

Mortgagee to have power of sale.

35

Every registered mortgagee shall have power absolutely to dispose of the ship or share in respect of which he is registered, and to give effectual receipts for the purchase money; but where there are more persons than one registered as mortgagees of the same ship or share, a subsequent mortgagee shall not, except under the order of a court of competent jurisdiction, sell the ship or share without the concurrence of every prior mortgagee.

Mortgage not affected by bankruptcy.

36

A registered mortgage of a ship or share shall not be affected by any act of bankruptcy committed by the mortgagor after the date of the record of the mortgage, notwithstanding that the mortgagor at the commencement of his bankruptcy had the ship or share in his possession, order, or disposition, or was reputed owner thereof, and the mortgage shall be preferred to any right, claim, or interest therein of the other creditors of the bankrupt or any trustee or assignee on their behalf.

Transfer of mortgages.

37

A registered mortgage of a ship or share may be transferred to any person and on production of the instrument effecting the transfer the Registrar of Shipping shall record it by entering in the register the name of the transferee as mortgagee of the ship or share, and shall by memorandum under his hand notify on the instrument of transfer that it has been recorded by him, stating the day and hour of the record.

Transmission of interest in mortgage by death, bankruptcy, etc.

38

• (1) Where the interest of a mortgagee in a ship or share is transmitted on death, or bankruptcy, or by any lawful means, other than by a transfer under this Act, the transmission shall be authenticated by a declaration of the person to whom the interest is transmitted, containing a statement of the manner in which and the person to whom the property has been transmitted, and shall be accompanied by the like evidence as is by this Act required in case of a corresponding transmission of the ownership of a ship or share.

• (2) The Registrar of Shipping on the receipt of the declaration, and the production of the evidence aforesaid, shall enter the name of the person entitled under the transmission in the register as mortgagee of the ship or share.

Name of Ship

Rules as to name of ship.

47

• (1) A ship shall not be described by any name other than that by which she is for the time being registered.

• (2) A change shall not be made in the name of a ship without the previous written permission of the Governor in Council.

• (3) Application for that permission shall be in writing, and if the Governor in Council is of opinion that the application is reasonable he may entertain it, and thereupon require notice thereof to be published in such form and manner as he thinks fit.

• (4) On permission being granted to change the name, the ship’s name shall forthwith be altered in the register, in the ship’s certificate of registry, and on her bows and stern.

• (5) If it is shown to the satisfaction of the Governor in Council that the name of any ship has been changed without his permission he shall direct that her name be altered into that which she bore before the change, and the name shall be altered in the register, in the ship’s certificate of registry, and on her bows and stern accordingly.

• (6) Where a ship having once been registered has ceased to be so registered no person unless ignorant of the previous registry (proof whereof shall lie on him) shall apply to register, and the Registrar of Shipping shall not knowingly register, the ship, except by the name by which she was previously registered, unless with the previous written permission of the Governor in Council.

• (7) Where a foreign ship, not having at any previous time been registered as a Cayman Islands ship, becomes a Cayman Islands ship, no person shall apply to register, and the Registrar of Shipping shall not knowingly register, the ship, except by the name which she bore as a foreign ship immediately before becoming a Cayman Islands ship, unless with the previous written permission of the Governor in Council.

• (8) If any person acts, or suffers any person under his control to act, in contravention of this section, or omits to do, or suffers any person under his control to omit to do, anything required by this section, he shall for each offence be liable to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, and (except in the case of an application being made under the section with respect to a foreign ship which not having at any previous time been registered as a Cayman Islands ship has become a Cayman Islands ship) the ship may be detained until this section is complied with.

Registry of Alterations, Registry Anew, and Transfer of Registry

Registry of alterations.

48

• (1) When a registered ship is so altered as not to correspond with the particulars relating to her tonnage or description contained in the register, then the Registrar of Shipping shall, on application being made to him, and on receipt of a certificate from the proper surveyor stating the particulars of the alteration, either cause the alteration to be registered, or direct that the ship be registered anew.

• (2) If default is made in registering anew a ship, or in registering an alteration of a ship so altered as aforesaid, the owner of the ship shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars and, in addition, to a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars for every day during which the offence continues after conviction.

Regulations for registry of alteration.

49

• (1) For the purpose of the registry of an alteration in a ship, the ship’s certificate of registry shall be produced to the Registrar of Shipping, and the Registrar shall, in his discretion, either retain the certificate of registry and grant a new certificate of registry containing a description of the ship as altered, or endorse and sign on the existing certificate a memorandum of the alteration.

• (2) The particulars of the alteration so made, and the fact of the new certificate having been granted, or endorsement having been made, shall be entered by the Registrar of Shipping in the register.

Registry anew on change of ownership.

51

Where the ownership of any ship is changed, the Registrar of Shipping may, on the application of the owners of the ship register the ship anew, although registration anew is not required under this Act.

Procedure for registry anew.

52

• (1) Where a ship is to be registered anew, the Registrar of Shipping shall proceed as in the case of first registry, and on the delivery up to him of the existing certificate of registry, and on the other requisites to registry, or in the case of a change of ownership such of them as he thinks material, being duly complied with, shall make such registry anew, and grant a certificate thereof.

• (2) When a ship is registered anew, her former register shall be considered as closed, except so far as relates to any unsatisfied mortgage of existing certificates of sale or mortgage entered thereon, but the names of all persons appearing on the former register to be interested in the ship, as owners or mortgagees shall be entered on the new register, and the registry anew shall not in any way affect the rights of any of those persons.

Transfer of registry.

53A

• (1) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, the registration of a ship under this Part of this Act may be transferred from Georgetown to a port in the United Kingdom or in a relevant overseas territory on the application to the Registrar of Shipping made by declaration in writing of all persons appearing on the register to be interested in the ship as owners or mortgagees, but that transfer shall not in any way affect the rights of those persons or any of them, and those rights shall in all respects continue in the same manner as if no such transfer had been effected.

• (1A) On any such application the Registrar of Shipping shall transmit notice thereof to the registrar of the intended port of registry with a copy of all particulars relating to the ship, and the names of all persons appearing on the register to be interested in the ship as owners or mortgagees.

• (1B) The ship’s certificate of registry shall be delivered up to either the Registrar of Shipping or the registrar of the ship’s intended port of registry, and, if delivered up to the former, shall be transmitted to the registrar of the intended port of registry.

• (2) Where an application is made under this section for the transfer of a ship’s registration to a port in the United Kingdom or in a relevant overseas territory, the Registrar of Shipping shall not proceed to deal with the application unless he is satisfied that registration of the ship under this Part of this Act at the intended port of registry is not precluded by—

• (a) any Order in Council in force under section 11 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988, or

• (b) any provision of the law in force in the United Kingdom or in the territory in question as the case may be;

and any certificate purporting to be signed by the registrar of the intended port of registry and stating that any such registration of the ship is not precluded by any such provision shall be conclusive evidence for the purposes of this subsection of the matters stated in it.

• (3) Where the registrar of the intended port of registry grants a fresh certificate of registry in pursuance of any such application as is mentioned in subsection (2) of this section, the ship in question shall thenceforth be considered as registered at the new port of registry, and the name of Georgetown shall be removed from the ship’s stern.

• (4) The Registrar of Shipping shall, on being notified by the registrar of the new port of registry of the grant of the new certificate of registry, terminate the registration of the ship in the register.

• (5) In this section “relevant overseas territory” means—

• (a) the Isle of Man;

• (b) any of the Channel Islands; or

• (c) any colony of the United Kingdom other than the Cayman Islands.

53B

• (1) Where a ship is registered under this Part of this Act in the United Kingdom or in a relevant overseas territory (as defined by section 53A(5) of this Act), the registration of that ship may (subject to subsection (5) of this section) be transferred to Georgetown if—

• (a) an application to the registrar of the existing port of registry has been made for the purpose by a declaration in writing by all the persons appearing on his register to be interested in the ship as owners or mortgagees, and

• (b) the documents mentioned in subsection (2) of this section have been transmitted to the Registrar of Shipping.

• (2) Those documents are—

• (a) a notice of the application transmitted by the registrar of the existing port of registry;

• (b) a copy transmitted by him of all the registered particulars of the ship and the names of all the persons appearing on his register to be interested in the ship as owners or mortgagees; and

• (c) the ship’s certificate of registry.

• (3) On receipt of those documents the Registrar of Shipping shall (subject to subsection (5) of this section)—

• (a) enter in the register all the particulars and names so transmitted, and

• (b) grant a fresh certificate of registry;

and thenceforth the ship in question shall be considered as registered at Georgetown, and the name of that port shall be substituted for the name of the former port of registry on the ship’s stern.

• (4) The Registrar of Shipping shall notify the registrar of the former port of registry of the grant of the new certificate of registry.

• (5) Where the entitlement of a ship to be registered is by virtue of any provision of section 4 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988 subject to any condition specified in that provision being satisfied, the registry of the ship shall not be transferred to Georgetown under this section unless it appears to the Registrar of Shipping that that condition is satisfied.

• (6) A transfer of registration under this section shall not affect the rights of any of the persons mentioned in subsection (1)(a) of this section.

Trusts and Equitable Rights

Notice of trusts not received.

56

No notice of any trust, express, implied, or constructive, shall be entered in the register or be receivable by the Registrar of Shipping, and, subject to any rights and powers appearing by the register to be vested in any other person, the registered owner of a ship or of a share therein shall have power absolutely to dispose in manner in this Act provided of the ship or share, and to give effectual receipts for any money paid or advanced by way of consideration.

Equities not excluded by Act.

57

The expression “beneficial interest,” where used in this Part of this Act, includes interests arising under contract and other equitable interests; and the intention of this Act is, that without prejudice to the provisions of this Act for preventing notice of trusts from being entered in the register or received by the Registrar of Shipping, and without prejudice to the powers of disposition and of giving receipts conferred by this Act on registered owners and mortgagees, and without prejudice to the provisions of this Act relating to the exclusion of unqualified persons from the ownership of Cayman Islands ships, interests arising under contract or other equitable interests may be enforced by or against owners and mortgagees of ships in respect of their interest therein in the same manner as in respect of any other personal property.

Liability of Beneficial Owner

Liability of owners.

58

Where any person is beneficially interested, otherwise than by way of mortgage, in any ship or share in a ship registered in the name of some other person as owner, the person so interested shall, as well as the registered owner, be subject to all pecuniary penalties imposed by this or any other Act on the owners of ships or shares therein, so nevertheless that proceedings may be taken for the enforcement of any such penalties against both or either of the aforesaid parties, with or without joining the other of them.

Declarations, Inspection of Register, and Fees

Power of Registrar of Shipping to dispense with declarations and other evidence.

60

When, under this Part of this Act, any person is required to make a declaration on behalf of himself or of any corporation, or any evidence is required to be produced to the Registrar of Shipping and it is shown to the satisfaction of the Registrar of Shipping that from any reasonable cause that person is unable to make the declaration, or that the evidence cannot be produced, the Registrar may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, and on the production of such other evidence, and subject to such terms as he may think fit, dispense with the declaration or evidence.

Mode of making declarations.

61

Declarations required by this Part of this Act may be made on behalf of a corporation by the secretary or any other officer of the corporation authorised by them for the purpose.

Application of fees.

62

All fees authorised to be taken under this Part of this Act, shall, except where otherwise in this Act provided, be disposed of in such way as the Governor in Council directs.

Returns, Evidence, and Forms

Returns to be made by Registrar of Shipping.

63

The Registrar of Shipping shall at such times as may be fixed by the Registrar-General of Shipping and Seamen of the United Kingdom, transmit to him a full return, in such form as the said Registrar-General may direct, of all registries, transfers, transmissions, mortgages, and other dealings with ships which have been registered by or communicated to him in his character of Registrar, and of the names of the persons concerned in the same, and of such other particulars as may be directed by the said Registrar-General.

Evidence of register, certificate of registry, and other documents.

64

• (1) A person, on payment of a fee to be fixed by the Governor in Council may on application to the Registrar of Shipping at a reasonable time during the hours of his official attendance, inspect the register.

• (2) The following documents shall be admissible in evidence in manner provided by this Act; namely,—

• (b) A certificate of registry under this Act purporting to be signed by the Registrar of Shipping or other proper officer;

• (c) An endorsement on a certificate of registry purporting to be signed by the Registrar of Shipping or other proper officer;

• (d) Every declaration made in pursuance of this Part of this Act.

• (3) A person shall be entitled, on payment of the prescribed fee, to obtain a copy, certified as a true copy by the Registrar of Shipping, of any information contained in an entry in the register, and any document purporting to be such a certified copy shall be evidence of the matters stated in the document.

• (4) A person shall be entitled, on payment of the prescribed fee, to obtain such a certified copy of the information entered in the register on the registry of a ship, together with a statement certified by the Registrar of Shipping showing who is for the time being the owner of the ship.

• (5) The provisions of subsection (3) of section 695 of this Act shall apply to any document supplied in pursuance of subsection (3) or (4) of this section as they apply to any document to which that section applies.

• (6) In subsection (3) or (4) of this section “the prescribed fee” means such fee as the Governor in Council may prescribe for the purposes of that subsection by regulations.

Forms of documents, and instructions as to registry.

65

• (1) The several instruments and documents specified in the second part of the First Schedule to this Act shall be in the form prescribed by the Governor in Council or as near thereto as circumstances permit; the Governor in Council may make such alterations in the form so prescribed as he may deem requisite.

• (2) The Registrar of Shipping shall not be required without the special direction of the Governor in Council to receive and enter in the register any bill of sale, mortgage, or other instrument of the disposal or transfer of any ship or share, or any interest therein, which is made in any form other than that for the time being required under this Part of this Act, or which contains any particulars other than those contained in such form; but the Governor in Council shall, before altering the forms, give such public notice thereof as may be necessary in order to prevent inconvenience.

• (4) The Governor in Council may also, for carrying into effect this Part of this Act, give such instructions to his officers as to the manner of making entries in the register, as to the execution and attestation of powers of attorney, as to any evidence required for identifying any person, as to the referring to himself of any question involving doubt or difficulty, and generally as to any act or thing to be done in pursuance of this Part of this Act, as he thinks fit.

Forgery and False Declarations

Forgery of documents.

66

If any person forges, or fraudulently alters or assists in forging or fraudulently altering, or procures to be forged or fraudulently altered, any of the following documents, namely, any register, builder’s certificate, surveyor’s certificate, certificate of registry, declaration, bill of sale, instrument of mortgage, or certificate of mortgage or sale under this Part of this Act, or any entry or endorsement required by this Part of this Act to be made in or on any of those documents, that person shall in respect of each offence be guilty of felony.

False declarations.

67

• (1) If any person in the case of any declaration made in the presence of or produced to the Registrar of Shipping under this Part of this Act, or in any document or other evidence produced to that Registrar—

• (i) wilfully makes, or assists in making, or procures to be made any false statement concerning the title to or ownership of, or the interest existing in any ship, or any share in a ship; or

• (ii) utters, produces, or makes use of any declaration or document containing any such false statement knowing the same to be false,

he shall in respect of each offence be guilty of a misdemeanor.

• (2) If any person wilfully makes a false declaration touching the qualification of himself or of any other person or of any corporation to own a Cayman Islands ship or any share therein, or the entitlement of a ship to be registered, he shall for each offence be guilty of a misdemeanor, and that ship or share shall be subject to forfeiture under this Act, to the extent of the interest therein of the declarant, and also, unless it is proved that the declaration was made without authority, of any person or corporation on behalf of whom the declaration is made.

National Character and Flag

National character of ship to be declared before clearance.

68

• (1) An officer of customs shall not grant clearance or transire for any ship until the master of such ship has declared to that officer the name of the nation to which he claims that she belongs, and that officer shall thereupon inscribe that name on the clearance or transire.

• (2) If a ship attempts to proceed to sea without such clearance or transire, she may be detained until the declaration is made.

Penalty for unduly assuming Cayman Islands character.

69

• (1) If a person uses the British flag and assumes the Cayman Islands national character on board a ship in which a majority interest is not owned by persons qualified to be owners of Cayman Islands ships for the purpose of making the ship appear to be a Cayman Islands ship, the ship shall be subject to forfeiture under this Act, unless the assumption has been made for the purpose of escaping capture by an enemy or by a foreign ship of war in the exercise of some belligerent right.

• (2) In any proceeding for enforcing any such forfeiture the burden of proving a title to use the British flag and assume the Cayman Islands national character shall lie upon the person using and assuming the same.

Penalty for concealing Cayman Islands character of a ship.

70

If the master or owner of a Cayman Islands ship does anything, or permits anything to be done, for the purpose of—

• (a) concealing the nationality of the ship from any person entitled under the law of the Cayman Islands to inquire into the nationality of the ship, or

• (b) deceiving such a person, or

• (c) causing the ship to appear not to be a Cayman Islands ship,

the ship shall be subject to forfeiture under this Act; and the master and the owner of the ship shall each be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars.

Liabilities of unregistered ships.

72

• (1) Where a ship—

• (a) is 24 metres or more in length, and

• (b) is wholly owned by one or more persons qualified to be owners of Cayman Islands ships, but

• (c) is neither registered under this Part of this Act nor registered under the law of any country outside the Cayman Islands,

then (notwithstanding that the ship is not entitled to any benefits, privileges, advantages or protection usually enjoyed by a Cayman Islands ship) the ship shall, for the purposes mentioned in subsection (2) of this section, be dealt with in the same manner in all respects as if the ship were a Cayman Islands ship.

• (2) Those purposes are—

• (a) the payment of dues, fees or other charges;

• (b) liability to fines and forfeiture; and

• (c) the punishment of offences committed on board the ship, or by any persons belonging to the ship.

• (3) In this section “length”, in relation to a ship, has the same meaning as in the tonnage regulations of this Act.

National colours for ships, and penalty on carrying improper colours.

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• (1) The red ensign bearing the Cayman Islands coat of arms usually worn by merchant ships, is hereby declared to be the proper national colours for all Cayman Islands ships except in the case of Her Majesty’s ships, or in the case of any other ship for the time being allowed to wear any other national colours in pursuance of a warrant from Her Majesty or from the Admiralty.

• (2) If any distinctive national colours, except such red ensign or except the Union Jack with a white border or if any colours usually worn by Her Majesty’s ships or resembling those of Her Majesty, or if the pendant usually carried by Her Majesty’s ships or any pendant resembling that pendant, are or is hoisted on board any Cayman Islands ship without warrant from Her Majesty or from the Admiralty, the master of the ship, or the owner thereof, if on board the same and every other person hoisting the colours or pendant, shall for each offence be liable on conviction on indictment to a fine or on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars.

• (3) Any commissioned officer on full pay in the military or naval service of Her Majesty, or any officer of customs in Her Majesty’s dominions, or any British consular officer, may board any Cayman Islands ship on which any colours or pendants are hoisted contrary to this Act, and seize and take away the colours or pendant, and the colours or pendant shall be forfeited to Her Majesty.

Penalty on ship not showing colours.

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• (1) A Cayman Islands ship shall hoist the proper national colours—

• (a) on a signal being made to her by one of Her Majesty’s ships (including any vessel under the command of an officer of Her Majesty’s navy on full pay), and

• (b) on entering or leaving any foreign port, and

• (c) if of fifty tons gross tonnage or upwards, on entering or leaving a port in the Cayman Islands.

• (2) If default is made on board any such ship in complying with this section, the master of the ship shall for each offence be liable to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars.

Saving for Admiralty.

75

The provisions of this Act with respect to colours worn by merchant ships shall not affect any other power of the Admiralty in relation thereto.

Forfeiture of Ship

Proceedings on forfeiture of ship.

76

• (1) Where any ship has either wholly or as to any share therein become subject to forfeiture under this Part of this Act,

• (a) any commissioned officer on full pay in the military or naval service of Her Majesty; or

• (b) any person appointed by the Governor in Council for the purposes of this section;

may seize and detain the ship and bring her for adjudication before the Grand Court, and the Court may thereupon adjudge the ship with her tackle, apparel, and furniture to be forfeited to Her Majesty, and make such order in the case as to the Court seems just, and may award to the officer or other person bringing in the ship for adjudication such portion of the proceeds of the sale of the ship, or any share therein, as the Court think fit.

• (2) Any such officer or other person as is mentioned in subsection (1) of this section shall not be responsible either civilly or criminally to any person whomsoever in respect of any such seizure or detention as aforesaid, notwithstanding that the ship has not been brought in for adjudication, or if so brought in is declared not liable to forfeiture, if it is shown to the satisfaction of the Court that there were reasonable grounds for such seizure or detention; but if no such grounds are shown the Court may award costs and damages to any party aggrieved, and make such other order in the premises as the Court thinks just.

Tonnage once ascertained to be the tonnage of ship.

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Whenever the tonnage of any ship has been ascertained and registered in accordance with the tonnage regulations of this Act, the same shall thenceforth be deemed to be the tonnage of the ship, and shall be repeated in every subsequent registry thereof, unless any alteration is made in the form or capacity of the ship, or unless it is discovered that the tonnage of the ship has been erroneously computed; and in either of those cases the ship shall be re-measured, and her tonnage determined and registered according to the tonnage regulations of this Act.

Fees for measurement.

83

Such fees as the Governor in Council determines shall be paid in respect of the measurement of a ship’s tonnage.

Surveyors and Regulations for measurement of ships.

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All duties in relation to the survey and measurement of ships shall be performed by surveyors of ships under this Act in accordance with regulations made by the Governor in Council.

first schedule

part ii

Documents of which the forms are to be prescribed by the Governor in Council.

• Certificate of surveyor.

• Declaration of ownership by individual owner.

• Declaration of ownership on behalf of a corporation as owner.

• Certificate of registry.

• Declaration of ownership by individual transferee.

• Declaration of ownership on behalf of a corporation as transferee.

• Provisional certificate.

• Declaration of owner taking by transmission.

• Declaration by mortgagee taking by transmission.

• Bill of Sale.

• Mortgage.

• Transfer of mortgage.

Signed

G. I. de Deney — Clerk of the Privy Council

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order extends to the Cayman Islands certain provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act 1988, as amended. Its main purpose is to make fresh provision for the registration of entitled vessels in the Cayman Islands, and it also makes provision with respect to the safety of navigation (sections 30—32, 35 and 50), prevention of oil pollution (sections 30, 31, 34, 35 and 50), inquiries (section 44) and crew agreements (section 46). Schedule 2 sets out Part I of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894 as it now applies in the Cayman Islands.

Footnotes

[^f00001]: 1988 c. 12.

[^f00002]: 1894 c. 60.

[^f00003]: 1970 c. 36.

[^f00004]: 1971 c. 59.

[^f00005]: 1974 c. 43.

[^f00006]: Law No. 23 of 1987 of the Cayman Islands.

[^f00007]: Cayman Islands Gazette No. 26 of 1977, 19th Dec. 1978, Item 106.