Over more than three decades starting in the 1990s, thousands of robberies, acts of piracy, and other violent attacks against merchant vessels have been reported in many of the world's waters. The grave danger of piracy poses a direct threat not only to the security and efficiency of marine transportation, but more seriously, to the lives of the men and woman carrying out this important function. This book collates ideas brought up by seafarers, shipowners, industry practitioners, government officials, academics, and researchers exchanged views and insights on the complex web of underlying factors behind the phenomenon of piracy. Piracy at Sea brings together a wide spectrum of maritime stakeholders, who present different aspects of the problem in an open manner and share their thoughts on how to deal with a truly complex situation. It encapsulates this collective wisdom in a publication that can serve as an easy reference for practitioners as well as researchers, and hopefully contribute to more concrete action.

This book provides valuable insights into various contemporary issues in public and private maritime law, including interdisciplinary aspects. The public law topics addressed include public international law and law of the sea, while a variety of private law topics are explored, e.g. commercial maritime law, conflict of laws, and new developments in the application of advanced technologies to maritime law issues. In addition, the book highlights current and topical discussions at international maritime forums such as the International Maritime Organization on regulatory and private law matters within the domain of marine environmental law, the law respecting seafarers' affairs and maritime pedagogics, maritime security, comparative law in the maritime field, trade law, recent case law analysis, taxation law in the maritime context, maritime arbitration, carriage of passengers, port law, and limitation of liability.

Over more than three decades starting in the 1990s, thousands of robberies, acts of piracy, and other violent attacks against merchant vessels have been reported in many of the world's waters. The grave danger of piracy poses a direct threat not only to the security and efficiency of marine transportation, but more seriously, to the lives of the men and woman carrying out this important function. This book collates ideas brought up by seafarers, shipowners, industry practitioners, government officials, academics, and researchers exchanged views and insights on the complex web of underlying factors behind the phenomenon of piracy. Piracy at Sea brings together a wide spectrum of maritime stakeholders, who present different aspects of the problem in an open manner and share their thoughts on how to deal with a truly complex situation. It encapsulates this collective wisdom in a publication that can serve as an easy reference for practitioners as well as researchers, and hopefully contribute to more concrete action.

This book provides valuable insights into various contemporary issues in public and private maritime law, including interdisciplinary aspects. The public law topics addressed include public international law and law of the sea, while a variety of private law topics are explored, e.g. commercial maritime law, conflict of laws, and new developments in the application of advanced technologies to maritime law issues. In addition, the book highlights current and topical discussions at international maritime forums such as the International Maritime Organization on regulatory and private law matters within the domain of marine environmental law, the law respecting seafarers' affairs and maritime pedagogics, maritime security, comparative law in the maritime field, trade law, recent case law analysis, taxation law in the maritime context, maritime arbitration, carriage of passengers, port law, and limitation of liability.

The international nature of the maritime industry means that ships are subject to the varying legal jurisdictions of the ports in which they call. Law and policy provide a framework necessary for establishing order and harmonization in a highly regulated global industry; they are vital instruments for promoting the safety, security, and commercial efficiency of shipping as well as the protection of the marine environment, in an atmosphere of competing national-contra-global as well as private-contra-public interests. Furthermore, it is of great importance that the legal and policy aspects of maritime activities closely follow the rapid pace of technological and commercial developments. Students and practitioners in maritime law and policy need to be constantly familiar with trends in the shipping industry and possess a solid comprehension of the international legal regimes that not only encourage the sustainable development of global maritime commerce, but also regulate its conduct. This book is a collection of essays dedicated to Professor Proshanto Kumar "PK" Mukherjee, one of the leading lights in the area of maritime law and policy. It presents a mix of background information and insightful analysis by leading experts on a wide range of some of the most pressing and contemporary maritime law and policy topics -- ranging from the development of maritime standards (Mbiah) to the challenges of operating flags of convenience (Mensah), from the latest convention on the international carriage of goods by sea (Basu Bal) to liability and compensation issues related to ship-source marine pollution (Jacobsson, Xu, Kojima), from the intricacies of marine insurance law (Thomas, Gauci) to the vagaries of the conflict of laws (Manolis), and from the legal framework for maritime piracy (Menefee) to the linkages between political stability, economic development, and piracy (Mejia).