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Part VII Charterparties, 33 Laytime and Demurrage

From: Carriage of Goods by Sea (3rd Edition)

Stephen Girvin

Content type:
Book content
Product:
International Commercial Law [ICML]
Published in print:
29 March 2022
ISBN:
9780198811947

From: Oxford Legal Research Library (http://olrl.ouplaw.com). (c) Oxford University Press, 2022. All Rights Reserved.date: 06 December 2022

Subject(s):
Charter parties — Damages

This chapter explores laytime and demurrage, which is a fundamental aspect of the law relating to voyage charterparties. The period of time available for the loading and unloading of cargo is known as the laydays. The laydays are free of charge to the charterer who is usually regarded as having paid for this time in the freight. If the laydays are exceeded, the charterer has to pay compensation to the shipowner either in the form of agreed damages (demurrage) or liquidated damages (damages for detention). There are essentially two competing interests, those of the charterer and those of the shipowner. The former will wish to secure an adequate number of laydays to cover any unexpected contingencies which may arise during the process of loading or discharge of the cargo, while the latter would wish to have his ship available for sailing elsewhere in pursuance of further employment.

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