MARITIME ARBITRATION CRITICAL ANALYSIS Author: Nilesh Kumar Baghel, Semester VI, Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur

INTRODUCTIONMaritime arbitration is an alternative means of handling conflicts, including shipping disputes, outside of the court system. In general, arbitration serves as a key tool to help various parties come to an agreement without litigating or using the judicial system. In arbitration, the parties to a conflict agree to hire a third party to provide an impartial opinion, which may be the final word on something that has the potential to become a thorny and protracted legal battle.Different kinds of arbitration apply to different maritime cases. Some kinds of arbitration are binding, which means the parties agree to abide by the finding of the arbiter. In other kinds of arbitration, called non-binding, the opinion presented is solely as a reference for further action. Other forms of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) include mediation, where the third party also acts as a resource.Maritime arbitration can apply to a range of situations. In some cases, disagreements over the shipping and handling of sea-bound freight can generate the need for a panel of arbiters to rule on a maritime issue. There are also many cases where maritime work injury disputes can use arbitration. Specific laws on protections for maritime workers and unions contribute to the need for legal alternatives when conflicts arise between an employer and workers.Some kinds of maritime arbitration that are focused on employment may relate to the Jones Act, an antique but still active law about general liability for dangers at sea. Maritime arbitration might also take into effect the complicated legal aspects of taking freight through international waters, where the rule of law may be much more abstract than it is on land. Confusions over maritime law have led to a lot of different kinds of conflict between parties with financial incentives around a shipping practice. When maritime arbitration is approached as an option, the lawyers of each party can give an opinion on whether it is in their clients best interest to pursue this alternative. Arbitration can be an effective way to make resolution easier. It can also be seen as a less thorough way to resolve a complex issue. As judicial systems are often regarded as overcomplicated and time consuming, arbitration has become popular in many industries, including some of those that focus on the high seas. 1. WHAT IS A MARITIME ARBITRATION?The maritime arbitration with which this part deals arise under contracts. These contracts are most commonly for the use of a ship or ships (charterparties), but they may also be for the carriage of cargo (bills of lading), or for ship sales or for insurance. In most instances , the relevant contract contains an arbitration clause.Some maritime arbitration are not covered here , for example, the rare case of an arbitration concerned with a collision between ships, or between a ship and some other object. There the parties will invariably have agreed to refer the dispute to arbitration after it arises; and they will probably appoint a specialist Ammiralty barrister as arbitrator and proceed much as they would in the Admiralty court. Similarly , no attempt is made to deal with the (far more common salvage arbitration conducted under the auspices of loyds.1.1WHY IS ARBITRATION USED IN MARITIME MATTERS?Historically , the majority of contractual shipping disputes have long been resolved by arbitration rather than through the courts. As with other specialized businesses (e.g. the commodity trades and construction)Those involved in shipping have generally preferred the judgement of their peers , as well as the privacy and flexibility of procedure that arbitration offers.The most common type of maritime contract giving rise to disputes that are referred to arbitration is the charterparty. That is a contract for the use of a ship, either for a particular voyage of for a period of time (voyage) and time charterparties respectively). For centuries such contracts have been brokered through specialized markets, most notably the Baltic Exchange in london. There it become customary for the brokers of disputing parties to seek the views of a senior colleague by which , frequently, the parties would abide. This informal procedure is thought to have been the seed of more formalized arbitration practices.

1.2WHERE DOES MARITIME ARBITRATION TAKE OLACE?Maritime arbitration is international . the Baltic exchange was for long regarded as at the heart of the worlds ship-broking activities. Probably as a consequence of that perception , London become the main centre for maritime arbitration . there are , however , many other centres. An number of them ptovide the seat for some maritime arbitration , notably New York , Paris , Tokyo and Hong kong. The parties to maritime arbitration , are rarely of the same nationality. Frequently both are strangers to the venue chosen. The ventures with which the contracts are concerned often involve a ship flying one countrys flag, owned by a corporation which is itself beneficially owned by the residents of another nation and is established in a third country, carrying cargoes between the ports of yet other different countries. For all these reasons , maritime arbitration can truly be said to be international.

2.PARTIES AND THEIR REPRESENTATIVES2.1 PARTIESAs will have become apparent , the parties involved in maritime arbitration are mostly shipowners on the one side and charterers on the other. In some cases, of course, the parties to a dispute will be buyers and sellers of a ship, in others owners and repairers, and so on. Frequently an owner will charter his ship to a charterer who, in turn, sub-lets the ship to another charterer. The process may continue further down a sometimes fairly lengthy line. In such cases, the charterer who sub-lets will normally be referred to as a "disponent owner". 2.2 RepresentativesP&I and Defence ClubsAlmost all shipowners, and nowadays many charterers (whether time-charterers or voyage charterers) enter the ships which they own, operate or charter in P&I Associations and Defence Associations. These play an important part in maritime arbitration. They are frequently the paymasters for the costs involved, so it is useful here to consider briefly their functions. Both types of association are in fact mutual insurance organisations and hence are referred to as "Clubs", the insured being "members".P&I ClubsP&I ("Protection and Indemnity") Clubs provide insurance against third-party liabilities. They insure, for example, liabilities for loss of or damage to cargo, oil pollution, damage to fixed and floating objects, wreck removal, death and personal injury and so on. In addition, as is usual in the case of such insurance, these Clubs cover their insured's legal costs of defending or prosecuting any proceedings related to an insured peril.Because of the nature of P&I cover and the fact that much of it concerns claims in tort or disputes arising under contracts where arbitration clauses are relatively uncommon (e.g. bills of lading), relatively few cases involving such cover go to arbitration. Nonetheless, quite frequently, for example, a shipowner will, through arbitration, seek an indemnity from his charterer in respect of some liability that he may have to cargo interests or even to an injured stevedore. In such cases the P&I Clubs are very much involved because they will normally be exercising subrogated rights in respect of any liability that falls upon their owner member.

Defence ClubsDefence Clubs, in contrast, do not insure liabilities as such. They exist to provide their members (be they owners or charterers) with legal costs insurance in respect of the prosecution or defence of claims which are not otherwise insured. Defence Club cover is discretionary, in the sense that members do not have an absolute right to have all their costs paid. Normally a Club will cover the costs of a preliminary investigation with a view to an opinion being formed on the member's case; thereafter continued cover will be in the discretion of the Club, normally depending upon the view formed.Usually in maritime arbitrations it is Defence Clubs that are in the background, because the disputes very frequently involve claims for freight, timecharter hire, damages for detention and other such matters that arc uninsured. In those cases the sums in dispute are purely for the account of the members whilst, subject to the exercise of the Defence Club's discretion, legal costs may be for the account of such a Club.Club ManagersThe firms that manage both P&I and Defence Clubs are staffed by claims hand -lers, many of them lawyers, but others having commercial, nautical and/or technical backgrounds. They are thus particularly well-equipped to handle the kind of disputes that arise. However, with rare exceptions, they normally only handle the initial stages of any particular matter, and thereafter keep a watching brief on behalf of their Clubs, the actual conduct of any particular dispute being put into the hands of lawyers. Interestingly, many of today's busier maritime arbitrators in London have Club backgrounds. This is probably because of the growing need for arbitrators to be able to understand increasingly legalistic disputes and to handle more procedural complexities than in the past . Hitherto, as a general rule, most parties and even many lawyers did not want to have professional lawyers (even retired ones) acting as arbitrators. There now seems to be less objection to lawyer-arbitrators.Clubs quite commonly appoint arbitrators because they handle the earlier stages of cases. This is perhaps another reason why arbitrators with Club backgrounds are popular.[footnoteRef:2] [2: PARA 11-017 OF BERNSTEINS HANDBOOK OF ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESLUTION PRACTICE]

RepresentativesLawyers and lay claim handlersThe cases themselves are, in most instances, handled by lawyers. However, a modest but consistent proportion of cases are dealt with by lay claims handlers rather than by lawyers. Particularly in matters which are dealt with on documents alone such claims handlers can be at least as effective as many lawyers and no doubt cost less (a number are based abroad and their fees do not begin to compare with those of City of London solicitors). Happily for them and the parties who use them it has been established that their costs are recoverable by a successful party in arbitration.[footnoteRef:3] [3: PARA 11-08 OF BERNSTEINS HANDBOOK OF ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESLUTION PRACTICE]

3. THE LONDON MARITIME ARBITRATORS ASSOCIATION (LMAA)3.1 What is the LMAA?The London Maritime Arbitrators Association (LMAA) is, as its name suggests, an association of maritime arbitrators who practise in London. It was established in 1960 to bring together those who were then frequently practising as maritime arbitrators, most of whom were brokers. Until that date the Secretary of the Baltic Exchange had mamtaihed a list of those willing to act as arbitrators. Once the LMAA was formed, that no longer was necessary.[footnoteRef:4] [4: PARA 11-032 OF BERNSTEINS HANDBOOK OF ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESLUTION PRACTICE]

3.2 The LMAA's functionsThe LMAA is essentially a body that brings together already practising arbitrators. It does not seek to train or educate arbitrators, believing that to be best done by a body such as the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, and through experience. It does, however, maintain a high standard for admission to membership, increasingly expecting applicants to have undergone training in the Chartered Institute, and certainly expecting them to have actual experience of acting as an arbitrator and to be able to show that they are capable of properly conducting themselves, writing adequate awards, etc.[footnoteRef:5] [5: PARA 11-033 OF BERNSTEINS HANDBOOK OF ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESLUTION PRACTICE]

The Association currently has 41 full members and 17 retired members, some 11-034 of whom still arbitrate. In order to maintain links with the users of maritime arbitration and their representatives as well as with others involved (lawyers, experts and the like) the LMAA maintains a category of supporting membership which is open to those who do not normally hold themselves out as or practise as arbitrators. Currently there are over 700 members in this category. A liaison committee made of representative supporting members and some members of the LMAA Committee exists to sustain more formal contacts between the Association.[footnoteRef:6] [6: PARA 11-034 OF BERNSTEINS HANDBOOK OF ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESLUTION PRACTICE]

3.3 The LMAA TermsApart from the natural advantages that arise from bringing together the arbitrators involved in one specialist discipline and from maintaining links with the users of, and other practitioners in, such arbitration, as well as with the judiciary, the LMAA's most substantial contribution has probably been the publication and the keeping up-to-date of the "LMAA Terms". These are terms on the basis of which members of the LMAA accept appointment and which now govern almost every London maritime arbitration. The 2002 Terms (revised in 1997 to take account of the 1996 Act and latterly to deal with some other matters that required attention) are set .In addition, the LMAA has published a Small Claims Procedure which parties may adopt for smaller disputes.

4. STARTING A MARITIME ARBITRATION4.1 APPOINTING AN ARBITRATORAs noted above, the majority of standard arbitration clauses in use in shipping contracts provide for each party to appoint its own arbitrator. The almost invariable practice is for the claimant to appoint its arbitrator first, giving notice of that appointment to the respondent and calling upon the respondent to make an appointment on its behalf. Very occasionally a respondent might start the proceedings by effecting an appointment itself, especially if it wants to engage a particular arbitrator.Although quite often a claimant starts an arbitration in respect of one dispute only, and perhaps knows of no others, it is common form to appoint a claimant's arbitrator in respect of "all disputes arising" under the relevant contract. This ensures that all possible disputes are dealt with in one arbitration. It also helps to avoid prescription problems.

4.2 SOLE ARBITRATOR CLAUSEA few arbitration clauses provide for sole arbitrators, or effectively do so under s.15(3) of the 1996 Act because they do not spell out any other number of arbitrators. However, such clauses are not common. When they are found, or when a party seeks to vary an existing arbitration agreement so as to have a sole arbitrator, it has often proved difficult in the past for the parties to agree upon the identity of someone to take that position and, in the first case, an application to the courts has frequently been necessary. There is now, however, greater willingness to agree sole arbitrators: an acknowledgment, no doubt, of both economic realities and the fact that today's arbitrators are impartial.

4.3 EXTENDING TIME FOR COMMENCEMENT OF ARBITRATIONS 12 of the 1996 Act of course applies to maritime as well as to other arbitrations. However, certain charterparties contain clauses which bar claims, not if arbitration is not commenced within a certain time, but if other stepse.g. providing certain documents and the making of a claimare not taken within a certain time. Such provisions are not covered by the statutory remedies and the court has no power to extend time when there Is a failure to comply with them.

4.4 NOTICE OF APPOINTMENTNotice of appointment of an arbitrator must be given in accordance with the requirements of the arbitration agreement, if any are spelt out. Otherwise, notice should be given to the respondent party itself. But in practice, in maritime disputes, notice is often given to a broker or other agent who may well have no authority, actual or ostensible, to receive it. This does not often cause a problem, but it may do so, and many parties and their representatives would do well to take more care to ensure that they are serving notice properly. In some cases there may be real difficulties in effecting service as required .4.5 DEFAULT IN APPOINTMENTMany maritime arbitrations concern claims for money withheld, to a greater or lesser degree cynically, by respondents who wish to postpone as long as possible a more or less inevitable day of judgment. Such cases are largely debt-collecting exercises. Many such respondents fail to appoint an arbitrator in response to the claimant's notice of appointment in the hope of delaying matters. Provided the claimant has called upon the respondent to make an appointment, English law allows the claimant's arbitrator to be appointed as sole arbitrator in many instances, and for the claimant to apply to the court for the appointment of a second arbitrator in others. Resort to these provisions is often required in practice.Although it is often said that where a respondent fails to participate, it is preferable to have a "full" two- or three-member tribunal rather than a sole arbitrator by default, in maritime cases the court's power to make a default appointment in certain circumstances is relatively rarely employed and any option in favour of a sole arbitrator is more commonly resorted to.4.5 APPOINTMENT OF THIRD ARBITRATOR OR UMPIREIn most cases, though, respondents do appoint arbitrators. Some legislative and/ or contractual provisions may require the appointment of a third arbitrator, or less commonly an umpire, once the parties' arbitrators have been appointed. In practice, however, it is normal to secure the agreement of the parties to postpone any such appointment until it becomes necessary (e.g. in case of disagreement, or upon the fixing of an oral hearing). This saves costs and allows the reference to be conducted more efficiently. In the case of three-arbitrator clauses, para.8(b) of the LMAA Terms provides that the party-appointed arbitrators may, at any time after their appointment, appoint a third arbitrator so long as they do so before any substantive hearing or forthwith if they cannot agree on any matter related to the arbitration.Normally, no third arbitrator will be appointed until shortly before an oral hearing takes place. Often interlocutory hearings for directions will be conducted without the tribunal having been completed, depending on the nature of the dispute and that of the hearing.In general it is the first two (usually party-appointed) arbitrators who have the gift of the appointment of a third arbitrator or umpire. Occasionally a clause provides for some third party to make the appointment. Even in such cases the first two arbitrators commonly invite the parties to agree that the appointment may be made by the arbitrators. They are usually in the best position to know whom to appoint. Such consent is generally forthcoming.When it comes to making an appointment the first two arbitrators endeavour to choose someone whose particular qualities, experience and skills fit the case before them.4.6 THE ARBITRATORSthe arbitrators appointed are usually members of the LMAA, though there is 0 requirement to this effect unless (which happens rarely) the arbitration clause pecifically provides for LMAA members. Who are these arbitrators? Thirty or more years ago they were, almost ntirely, brokers from the Baltic Exchange plus a few owners or charterers, or their representatives. Since that time, cases have become more complex, lawyers have been involved increasingly (the arbitration conducted by parties alone is now a rarity, whereas once it was common) and procedural matters have become correspondingly more important. Nowadays, most (though happily not all) of the busy arbitrators have some legal background or training, and many have worked for the managers of mutual Clubs .Many arbitration clauses contain a requirement that the arbitrators shall be "commercial men" , possibly "conversant with shipping" and sometimes "not lawyers". It is not altogether easy to define a "commercial man". In Pando Compania Navi-era SA. v Filmo SA.S? it was held that a full-time maritime arbitrator who had, some years earlier, retired from practice as a solicitor but who also held directorships in shipping companies was a "commercial man". On the other hand, it has been held that a barrister practising at the Commercial Bar is not within the wording. An express exclusion of lawyers would raise a question as to whether a non-practising or retired lawyer would be disqualified.

5. "CHAIN" OR "STRING" ARBITRATIONSIt is not uncommon for a ship to be chartered from its owner and then to be sub-chartered by the charterer. The sub-charterer in turn may enter into a further sub-fixture, and so on. As a result, the same or a similar dispute may arise under each of the contracts.There are no provisions of law enabling any kind of consolidation of arbitrations in such circumstances even in the 1996 Act. In practice, though, certain techniques have been developed in maritime arbitration to reduce, if not eliminate, the risks of inconsistent decisions and cases proceeding "out of step" with one another.For example, the "first" 'claimant may appoint his arbitrator and give notice of that appointment to the "first" respondent. He in turn will appoint that same arbitrator under his other contract (in which he will be claimant) and wait for a counter-appointment to come "up the line". The "first" respondent will then appoint that same arbitrator against the "first" claimant. Especially when as is often the case this process takes place with a degree of co-operation, the outcome can be identical tribunals in two or more cases. Even if that does not happen, usually at least one member of the tribunals will be common. Or parties in a "chain" or "string" may agree to have the same sole arbitrator.The LMAA Terms contain provisions enabling arbitrators to order the concurrent hearings of arbitrations where common issues of fact or law appear to be raised, even where the tribunals are not identical, and to make appropriate directions as the interests of fairness, economy and expedition require. These include directing that documents disclosed in one matter shall be made available to the parties in the other, upon conditions if appropriate, and that the evidence given in one arbitration shall be treated as evidence in the other subject to the parties being given an opportunity to deal with it and to any other conditions the arbitrators may impose [footnoteRef:7]The arbitrators themselves try to achieve as much consistency as they can in the constitution of the various tribunals by making appropriate cross-appointments whenever possible. And where, for example, arbitration clauses are inconsistent (one may require an umpire whilst another, up or down the line, requires three arbitrators) the arbitrators urge the parties to agree appropriate variations to avoid difficulties that might otherwise arise They frequently obtain the appropriate consents. [7: para. 14(b) oh the Terms]

6. MARITIME ARBITRATION OUTSIDE THE UNITED KINGDOMThe following notes seek to highlight the distinction between maritime arbitration as conducted in London and dealt with above on the one hand, and maritime arbitration as conducted in new York, paris and Tokyo respectively.6.1 NEW YORKThe bulk of maritime arbitrations in New York are conducted under the auspicaof the Society of Maritime Arbitrators, Inc. ("SMA"). Parties and arbitrators]customarily agree to apply SMA Rules. Some charterparties anticipate theapplication of these Rules, but ad hoc agreements to apply them are oftenrequired. These Rules deal with many of the same matters covered by theLMAA Terms, as well as some of the procedural aspects dealt with in Englandin the Arbitration Acts.[footnoteRef:8] [8: The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance provided by Manfred W. Arnold of the Society of Maritime Arbitrators Inc. in the revision of this text.]

Although many arbitrations in New York are conducted on documents alone, in most cases hearings are held. Unlike what commonly happens in London, pleadings and discovery do not have to be exchanged before an oral hearing is j arranged. The SMA Rules require that the parties deliver to the tribunal a state- ment identifying all the parties, and that each claimant submit a pre-hearing statement of its position and claim. Copies of any exhibits to be introduced at a particular hearing are to be supplied to the other party and to the arbitrators at least one week prior to the hearing. Whereas, in the past, hearings tended to be held at lunchtime or in the evenings after business hours, the current practice favours full day or even consecutive day hearings. There are fewer full-time arbitrators than in London. Hearings tend to be more informal than in London, and are usually held in the offices of attorneys, parties or the tribunal chairman. Parties customarily submit post-hearing and reply briefs after evidentiary hearings have been held, although they may prefer to present their final arguments at an oral hearing. Under SMA Rules, decisions are to be issued within 120 days of the close of proceedings.Virtually all New York arbitration decisions are final, subject only to reversal on extremely narrow grounds spelt out in the US Federal Arbitration Act. SMA arbitrators' decisions are fully reasoned and are published in the Award Service of the SMA which is distributed to subscribers on a quarterly basis. These decisions are also available through the Lexis electronic retrieval system.

6.2 PARISThe vast majority of maritime arbitrations in Paris are administered by the Chambre Arbitrale Maritime de Paris. Its rules contain detailed provisions for the conduct of arbitrations, from the seizing of the Chambre through to the signature and notification of awards. The Committee of the Chambre has considerable powers and duties, in particular in relation to the appointment of arbitrators: sole arbitrators (or occasionally a tribunal of three) where the parties are unable to agree on the identity of an individual, third arbitrators (unlessexceptionallythe parties have agreed that their nominees should make that appointment), and arbitrators on behalf of parties who fail to appoint.The parties exchange written statements of case supported by the documents they rely upon, and provide these to the Chambre which normally only sends them to the arbitrators when the file is complete and, at least in theory, the matter is ready for hearing. The arbitrators are not involved in the administration of cases up to this stage.Thereafter, the arbitrators fix a hearing (invariably held at the offices of the Chambre). Arbitrations on documents alone are quite rare, although many of the hearings add nothing to the arbitrators' appreciation of a case gleaned from the written exchanges. The hearings are usually brief. The parties' representatives seldom do more than reiterate the points made in writing, though occasionally a witness may be called.

6.3 TOKYOMaritime arbitration in Tokyo is administered by the Tokyo Maritime Arbitration Commission of The Japan Shipping Exchange, Inc. At the start of an arbitration the parties can themselves nominate up to seven candidates for arbitrators respectively. The Commission then appoints one arbitrator from each list of nominations and also appoints a third arbitrator. In case the parties agree on the nomination of one person and have no objection to a sole arbitrator, the Commission appoints such nominee as a sole arbitrator.[footnoteRef:9] [9: The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance provided by takao tateishi of the japan shiping Exchange Inc. in the revision of this text]

The Commission's Rules contain detailed provisions for the exchange of written statements of case and documents and, as with Paris, most other matters. Hearings invariably take place (in English for international arbitrations, as a rule; though the parties may agree to use the Japanese language). Once more, proceedings are essentially inquisitorial so that arbitrators may, for example, themselves request the presence of witnesses (fact or expert), ask for further documents and examine the parties

7. MARITIME ARBITRATION IN INDIA 7.1 LAW TO APPLY:Any arbitration conducted under these rules shall be governed by the provisions of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 (26 of 1996) or any further amendments thereof.7.2 SCOPE OF APPLICATION:These rules shall apply, inter alia, to maritime disputes in respect of following:1. Interpretation of charterparty, any contract of affreightment and bills of lading;2. Carriage of goods by sea;3. Marine salvage, towage of vessels or other floating objects;4. Damages arising out of collisions, groundings, fire or any such accidents whether in port or at sea, including damage to fix or floating objects at ports;5. Interpretation of any shipping documents;6. Ownership of vessels and aspects relation to lines and mortgages;7. General Average, particular average and matters arising out of contracts of marine insurance;8. Wreck removal and marine pollution;9. Disputes relating to other matters connected with shipping and not mentioned above.

7.3 INITIATION OF ARBITRATION:1. Any of the parties who have entered into an agreement for resolving disputes by arbitration under these rules may make a written request for arbitration to the Secretary. Such request shall include the following particulars:(1) the names and addresses of the parties to the arbitration;(2) copies of the contract in which the arbitration clause is contained;(3) a brief statement describing the nature and circumstances of the dispute and specifying the relief claimed;(4) a statement on such matters as the place of the arbitration the name(s) of Arbitrators on which the parties have already agreed in relation to the conduct of the arbitration, or with respect to which the requesting party wishes to make a proposal;(5) if the arbitration agreement calls for nomination of arbitrators by the parties the name and address andtelephone and fax number of the claimants nominee.(6) Registration fee of 2,500/- (non-Refundable) for claim upto One crore and Rs. 5,000/- (non-Refundable) for claims more than one crore.

2. Copies of all claims, counter claims and other documents submitted to the Secretary shall be sent to the other party.

7.4 SUBMISSION OF THE CASE TO THE ARBITRAL TRIBUNAL :The Secretary shall send copies of claim statements, defence statement, counter claim and other documents received under Rule(8) from the parties to the dispute to the arbitrator(s) with a request to proceed with the arbitration and the arbitrator (s) shall be deemed to have entered on the reference on the day on which applications, defence statements, counterclaim, replies, documents etc. have been despatched to them. Intimation shall be given to the parties of the day on which the arbitrator(s) haveentered on the reference. When the party instituting a case desires to withdraw it before an arbitraltribunal has been constituted, the Secretary shall return to him any deposits made by him, after deducting such charges as he might have incurred in connection with the cases. The registration fee, however, shallnot be refundable. If the arbitration is terminated by the act or default of any parties after constituting of the arbitral tribunal and before the award is made, any fees, charges and expenses incurred by the Council shall be paid by the parties in such proportion as the arbitral tribunal shall determine.

7.5 VENUE OF ARBITRATION:Venue for the arbitration under these Rules shall be any place in India. Where the claimant and respondent are unable to agree on a common venue, the venue shall be in New Delhi. 7.6 LANGUAGE OF PROCEEDINGS:All international arbitration proceedings shall be conducted in English language. If assistance of the interpreter during the proceedings is required, party concerned shall bear as cost. The interpreter shall be an independent person to be appointed by the Council.

CONCLUSIONMaritime arbitration is an alternative means of handling conflicts, including shipping disputes, outside of the court system. In general, arbitration serves as a key tool to help various parties come to an agreement without litigating or using the judicial system. In arbitration, the parties to a conflict agree to hire a third party to provide an impartial opinion, which may be the final word on something that has the potential to become a thorny and protracted legal battle.When maritime arbitration is approached as an option, the lawyers of each party can give an opinion on whether it is in their clients best interest to pursue this alternative. Arbitration can be an effective way to make resolution easier. It can also be seen as a less thorough way to resolve a complex issue. As judicial systems are often regarded as overcomplicated and time consuming, arbitration has become popular in many industries, including some of those that focus on the high seas.

Bibliography:1. JOHN TACKABERRY &.A. MARRIOTT, BERNSTEINS HANDBOOK OF ARBITRATION AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION PRACTICE, 4TH EDITION, SWEET AND MAXWELL 2. DR. N.V. PARANJAPE, LAW RELATIONG TO ARBITRATION AND CONCILIATION IN INDIA , 4TH EDITION , CENTRAL LAW AGENCY16 | Page