Current Developments in German Maritime Arbitration

1. CurrentDevelopments in German Maritime Arbitration Dr. Sabine Rittmeister Lawyer at Blaum Dettmers Rabstein, Hamburg/Germany

2. Introductionto GMAA Foundationof GMAA in 1983 Seat Hamburg/Bremen asGermany‘slargestportcities Ad hoc arbitration Set ofclearand simple proceduralrulesprovided Costefficiencyandtransparencybyfixedfeesystemforarbitrators Activeroleofarbitrators – settlementsareencouraged Information availablefromthewebsite www.gmaa.de

3. Arbitration Agreement GMAA arbitrationclausereads: „All disputesarising out ofor in connectionwiththiscontractorconcerningitsvalidityshallbefinallysettledbyarbitration in accordancewiththe Arbitration Rules ofthe German Maritime Arbitration Association“ Short form: „GMAA Arbitration“ Legal basisfor valid form in sec. 1031 German Code ofCivilProcedure (ZPO): Nostrictwritten form but requirementthatdocumentaryproofofarbitrationagreement must bepossible

4. Arbitration Agreements in Bills ofLading B/L Long establishedrule: consigneeisboundbyarbitrationclause in B/L Problem: referencetoarbitrationclause in C/P byincorporationclause in B/L Consignee Carrier C/P Shipper

5. Validityofincorporationclauses „Old“ German procedurallaw: referencepossible „Arbitration clauseas per C/P“ Change in lawbyreformof German Maritime Law contained in Commercial Code (HGB), entryintoforce April 2013: Arbitration clause must beexplicitlyset out in the B/L, referenceto C/P is not sufficient! Ratio: Protectionofconsignee‘sinterests

6. Thankyouforyour Attention! Forfurtherquestionspleasecontact: Dr. Sabine Rittmeister Blaum Dettmers Rabstein Rechtsanwaltspartnerschaft mbB Alter Wall 55 20457 Hamburg / Germany Phone: +49 – 40 – 36 97 74 0 rittmeister@bdr-legal.de