October 22, 1936

PUBLIC ACT NO. 521

CARRIAGE OF GOODS BY SEA ACT

SECTION 1. That the provisions of Public Act No. 521 of the 7th Congress of the United States,
approved on April 16, 1936, be accepted, as it is hereby accepted to be made applicable to all
contracts for the carriage of goods by sea to and from Philippine ports in foreign trade:
Provided, that nothing in this Act shall be construed as repealing any existing provision of
the Code of Commerce which is now in force, or as limiting its application.

SECTION 2. This Act shall take effect upon its approval. (Approved October 22, 1936).

TITLE I

SECTION 1. When used in this Act —

(a) The term "carrier" includes the owner or the charterer who enters into a contract of
carriage with a shipper.

(b) The term "contract of carriage" applies only to contracts of carriage by covered by a bill of
lading or any similar document of title, insofar as such document relates to the carriage of
goods by sea, including any bill of lading or any similar document as aforesaid issued under
or pursuant to a character party from the moment at which such bill of lading or similar
document of title regulates the relations between a carrier and a holder of the same.

(c) The term "goods" includes goods, wares, merchandise, and articles of every kind
whatsoever, except live animals and cargo which by the contract of carriage is stated as being
carried on deck and is so carried.

(d) The term "ship" means any vessel used for the carriage of goods by sea.

(e) The term "carriage of goods" covers the period from the time when the goods are loaded
to the time when they are discharged from the ship.

RISKS

SECTION 2. Subject to the provisions of Section 6, under every contract of carriage of goods
by sea, the carrier in relation to the loading, handling, stowage,carriage, custody, care, and
discharge of such goods shall be subject to the responsibilities and liabilities and entitled to
the rights and immunities hereinafter set forth.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND LIABILITIES

SECTION 3. (1) The carrier shall be bound before and at the beginning of the voyage to
exercise due diligence to —

(a) Make the ship seaworthy;

(b) Properly man, equip, and supply the ship;

(c) Make the holds, refrigerating and cooling chambers, and all other parts of the ship in
which goods are carried, fit and safe for their reception,carriage, and preservation.

(2) The carrier shall properly and carefully load, handle, stow, carry, keep, care for, and
discharge the goods carried.

(3) After receiving the goods into his carrier, or the master or agent of the carrier, shall, on
demand of the shipper, issue to the shipper a bill of lading showing among other things —

(a) The loading marks necessary for identification of the goods as the same are furnished in
writing by the shipper before the loading of such goods starts, provided such marks are
stamped or otherwise shown clearly upon the goods if uncovered, in such a manner as should
ordinarily remain legible until the end of the voyage.

(b) Either the number of packages or pieces, or the quantity or weight, as the case may be, as
furnished in writing by the shipper.

(c) The apparent order and conditions of the goods: Provided, that no carrier, master, or
agent of the carrier, shall be bound to state or show in the bill of lading any marks, number,
quantity, or weight which he has reasonable ground for suspecting not accurately to
represent the good actually received or which he has had no reasonable means of checking.

(4) Such a bill of lading shall be prima facie evidence of the receipt by the carrier of the goods
as therein described in accordance with paragraphs (3) (a),(b),and (c),of this section: (The rest
of the provision is not applicable to the Philippines).

(5) The shipper shall be deemed to have guaranteed to the carrier the accuracy at the time of
shipment of the marks, number, quantity, and weight, as furnished by him; and the shipper
shall indemnify the carrier against all loss, damages, and expenses arising or resulting from
inaccuracies in such particulars. The right of the carrier to such indemnity shall in no way
limit his responsibility and liability under the contract of carriage to any person other than
the shipper.

(6) Unless notice or loss or damage and the general nature of such loss or damage by given in
writing to the carrier or his agent at the port of discharge or at the time of the removal of the
goods into the custody of the person entitled to delivery thereof under the contract of
carriage, such removal shall be  prima facie evidence of the delivery by the carrier of the
goods as described in the bill of lading. If the loss or damage is not apparent, the notice must
be given within three days ofthe delivery.

Said notice of loss or damage may be endorsed upon the receipt for the goods given by the
person taking delivery thereof.

The notice in writing need not be given if the state of the goods has at the time of their receipt
been the subject of joint survey or inspection.

In any event the carrier and the ship shall be discharged from all liability in respect of loss or
damage unless suit is brought within one year after delivery of the goods or the date when the
goods should have been delivered: Provided, that, if a notice of loss or damage, either
apparent or concealed, is not given as provided for in this section, that fact shall not affect or
prejudice the right of the shipper to bring suit within one year after the delivery of the goods
or the date when the goods should have been delivered.

In the case of any actual or apprehended loss or damage, the carrier and the receiver shall
give all reasonable facilities to each other for inspecting and tallying the goods.

(7) After the goods are loaded the bill of lading to be issued by the carrier, master, or agent of
the carrier to the shipper shall if the shipper so demands, be a "shipped" bill of lading:
Provided, that if the shipper shall have previously taken up any document of title to such
goods, he shall surrender the same as against the issue of the "shipped" bill of lading, but at
the option of the carrier such document of title may be noted at the port of shipment by the
carrier, master, or agent with the name or names of the ship or ships upon which the goods
have been shipped and the date or dates of shipment, and when so noted the same shall for
the purpose of this section be deemed to constitute a "shipped" bill of lading.

(8) Any clause, covenant, or agreement in a contract of carriage relieving the carrier of the
ship from liability for loss or damage to or in connection with the goods, arising from
negligence, fault, or failure in the duties and obligations provide in this section or lessening
such liability otherwise than as provided in this Act, shall be null and void and of no effect. A
benefit of insurance in favor of the carrier, or similar clause, shall be deemed to be a clause
relieving the carrier from liability.

RIGHTS AND IMMUNITIES

SECTION 4. (1) Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be liable for loss or damage arising or
resulting from unseaworthiness unless caused by want of due diligence on the part of the
carrier to make the ship seaworthy and to secure that the ship is properly manned, equipped,
and supplied, and to make the holds, refrigerating and cooling chambers, and all other parts
of the ship in which goods are carried fit and safe for their reception, carriage, and
preservation, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (1) of Section (3).Whenever loss
or damage has resulted from unseaworthiness, the burden of proving the exercise of due
diligence shall be on the carrier or other person claiming exemption under this section.

(2) Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be responsible for loss or damage arising or resulting
from —

(a) Act, neglect, or default of the master, mariner, pilot, or the servants of the carrier in the
navigation or in the management of the ship;

(b) Fire, unless caused by the actual fault or privity of the carrier;

(c) Perils, dangers, and accidents of the sea or other navigable water;

(d) Act of God;

(e) Act of war;

(f) Act of public enemies;

(g) Arrest or restraint of princes, rulers, or people, or seizure under legal process;
(h) Quarantine restrictions;

(i) Act or omission of the shipper or owner of the goods, his agent or representative;

(j) Strikes or lockouts or stoppage or restraint of labor from whatever cause, whether partial
or general: Provided, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to relieve a carrier
from responsibility for the carrier's own acts;

(k) Riots and civil commotions;

(l) Saving or attempting to save life or property at sea;

(m) Wastage in bulk or weight or any other loss or damage arising from inherent defect,
quality, or vice of the goods;

(n) Insufficiency or packing;

(o) Insufficiency or inadequacy of marks;

(p) Latent defects not discoverable by due diligence; and

(q) Any other cause arising without the actual fault and privity of the carrier and without the
fault or neglect of the agents or servants of the carrier, but the burden of proof shall be on the
person claiming the benefit of this exception to show that neither the actual fault or privity of
the carrier nor the fault or neglect of the agents or servants of the carrier contributed to the
loss or damage.

(3) The shipper shall not be responsible for loss or damage sustained by the carrier or the ship
arising or resulting from any cause without the act, or neglect of the shipper, his agents, or his
servants.

(4) Any deviation in saving or attempting to save life or property at sea, or any reasonable
deviation shall not be deemed to be an infringement or breach or this Act or of the contract of
carriage, and carrier shall not be liable for any loss or damage resulting therefrom: Provided,
however, that if the deviation is for the purpose of loading or unloading cargo or passengers it
shall, prima facie,be regarded as unreasonable.

(5) Neither the carrier nor the ship shall in any event be or become liable for any loss or
damage to or in connection with the transportation of goods in an amount exceeding $500
per package of lawful money of the United States, or in case of goods not shipped in
packages, per customary freight unit, or the equivalent of that sum in other currency, unless
the nature and value of such goods have been declared by the shipper before shipment and
inserted in the bill of lading. This declaration, if embodied in the bill of lading, shall be prima
facie evidence, but shall not be conclusive on the carrier.

By agreement between the carrier, master or agent of the carrier, and the shipper another
maximum amount than that mentioned in this paragraph may be fixed: Provided, that such
maximum shall not be less than the figure above named. In no event shall the carrier be liable
for more than the amount of damage actually sustained.
Neither the carrier nor the ship shall be responsible in any event for loss damage to or in
connection with the transportation of the goods if the nature or value thereof has been
knowingly and fraudulently mis-stated by the shipper in the bill of lading.

(6) Goods of an inflammable, explosive, or dangerous nature to the shipment whereof, the
carrier, master or agent of the carrier, has not consented with knowledge of their nature and
character, may at any time before discharge be landed at any place or destroyed or rendered
innocuous by the carrier without compensation, and the shipper of such goods shall be liable
for all damages and expenses directly or indirectly arising out of or resulting from such
shipment. If any such goods shipped with such knowledge and consent shall become a
danger to the ship or cargo, they may in like manner be landed at any place, or destroyed or
rendered innocuous by the carrier without liability on the part of the carrier except to general
average if any.

SURRENDER OF RIGHTS AND IMMUNITIES AND INCREASE OF RESPONSIBILITIES AND

LIABILITIES

SECTION 5. A carrier shall be at liberty to surrender in whole or in part all or any of his rights
and immunities or to increase any of his responsibilities and liabilities under this Act,
provided such surrender or increase shall be embodied in the bill of lading issued to the
shipper.

The provisions of this Act shall not be applicable to charter parties; but if bills of lading are
issued in the case of a ship under a charter party, they shall comply with the terms of this Act.
Nothing in this Act shall be held to prevent the insertion in a bill of lading of any lawful
provisions regarding general average.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS

SECTION 6. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding section, a carrier, master or

agent of the carrier, and a shipper shall, in regard to any particular goods be at liberty to enter
into any agreement in any terms as to the responsibility and liability of the carrier for such
goods, and as to the rights and immunities of the carrier in respect to such goods, or his
obligation to seaworthiness, (so far as the stipulation regarding seaworthiness is contrary to
public policy),or the care or diligence of his servants or agents in regard to the loading,
handling, stowage, carriage, custody, care and discharge of the goods carried by sea;
provided, that in this case no bill of lading has been or shall be issued and that the terms
agreed shall be a non-negotiable document and shall be marked as such.

Any agreement so entered into shall have full legal effect: Provided, that this section shall not
apply to ordinary commercial shipments made in the ordinary course of trade but only to
other shipments where the character or condition of the property to be carried or the
circumstances, terms and conditions under which the carriage is to be performed are such as
reasonably to justify a special agreement.

SECTION 7. Nothing contained in this Act shall prevent a carrier or a shipper from entering
into any agreement, stipulation, condition, reservation, or exemption as to the responsibility
and liability of the carrier or the ship for the loss or damage to or in connection with the
custody and care and handling of goods prior to the loading on and subsequent to the
discharge from the ship on which the goods are carried by sea.

SECTION 8. The provisions of this Act shall not affect the rights and obligations of the carrier
under the provisions of the Shipping Act, 1916, or under the provisions of Section 4281 to
4292, inclusive, of the Revised Statutes of the United States, or of any amendments thereto,
or under the provisions of any other enactment for the time being in force relating to the
limitation of the liability of the owners of seagoing vessels.

TITLE II

SECTION 9. Nothing contained in this Act shall be construed as permitting a common carrier
by water to discriminate between competing shippers similarly placed in time and
circumstances, either (a) with respect to their right to demand and receive bills of lading
subject to the provisions of this Act; or (b) when issuing such bills of lading either in the
surrender of any of the carrier's rights and immunities or in the increase of any of the carrier's
responsibilities and liabilities pursuant to Section 5, Title I, of this Act; (c) in any other way
prohibited by the Shipping Act, 1916, as amended.

SECTION 10. (Not applicable to the Philippines.)

SECTION 11. When under the custom of any trade the weight of any bulk cargo inserted in the
bill of lading is a weight ascertained or accepted by a third party other than the carrier or the
shipper and the fact that the weight as ascertained or accepted is stated in the bill of lading,
then notwithstanding anything in this Act, the bill of lading shall not be deemed to be prima
facie evidence against the carrier of the receipt of goods of the weight so inserted in the bills
of lading, and the accuracy thereof at the time of shipment shall not be deemed to have been
guaranteed by the shipper.

SECTION 12. (Not applicable to the Philippines.)

SECTION 13. This Act shall apply to all contracts for carriage of goods by seas to or from ports
of the United States in foreign trade. As used in this Act the term "United States" includes its
districts, territories, and possessions: Provided, however, that the Philippine Legislature may
by law exclude its application to transportation to or from ports of the Philippine Islands. The
term "foreign trade" means the transportation of goods between the ports of the United
States and ports of foreign countries. Nothing in this Act shall be held to apply to contracts for
carriage of goods by sea between any port of the United States or its possessions and any
other port of the United States or its possessions: Provided, however, that any bill of lading or
similar document of the title which is evidence of a contract for the carriage of goods by sea
between such ports, containing an express statement that it shall be subject to the provisions
of this Act; shall be subjected hereto as fully as if subject hereto by the express provisions of
this Act: Provided, further, that every bill of lading or similar document of title which is
evidence of a contract for the carriage of goods by sea from ports of the United States in
foreign trade, shall contain a statement that it shall have effect subject to the provisions of
this Act.

SECTION 14. Upon the certification of the Secretary of Commerce that the foreign commerce
of the United States in its competition with that of foreign nations is prejudiced by the
provisions, or any of them, of the Title I of this Act, or by the laws of any foreign country or
countries relating to the carriage of goods by sea, the President of the United States may,
from time to time by proclamation, suspend any or all provisions of Title I of this Act for such
periods of time or indefinitely as may be designated in the proclamation. The President may
at any time rescind such suspension of Title I hereof, and any provisions thereof which may
have been suspended shall thereby be reinstated and again apply to contracts thereafter
made for carriage of goods by sea. Any proclamation of suspension or rescission of any such
suspension shall take effect on the date named therein, which date shall be not less than ten
days from the issue of the proclamation.

Any contract for the carriage of goods by sea, subject to the provisions of this Act, effective
during any period when Title I hereof, or any part thereof, is suspended, shall be subject to all
provisions of law now or hereafter applicable to that part of Title I which may have thus been
suspended.

SECTION 15. This Act shall take effect ninety days after the date of its approval; but nothing in
this Act shall apply during a period not to exceed one year following its approval to any
contract for the carriage of goods by sea, made before the date on which this Act is approved
nor to any bill of lading or similar document of title issued, whether before or after such date
of approval in pursuance of any such contract as aforesaid.

SECTION 16. This Act may be cited as the "Carriage of Goods by Sea Act."

Approved: April 16, 1936

(Carriage of Goods by Sea Act , Commonwealth Act No. 65, [October 22, 1936])
 Code of Commerce for Maritime Law
BOOK II Special Commercial Contracts
TITLE VII Commercial Contracts for Transportation Overland

ARTICLE 360. The shipper may, without changing the place where the delivery is to be made,
change the consignment of the goods delivered to the carrier, and the latter shall comply
with his orders, provided that at the time of making the change of the consignee the bill of
lading subscribed by the carrier be returned to him, if one were issued, exchanging it for
another containing the novation of the contract.

The expenses arising from the change of consignment shall be defrayed by the shipper.

ARTICLE 361. Merchandise shall be transported at the risk and venture of the shipper, if the
contrary was not expressly stipulated.

Therefore, all damages and impairment suffered by the goods during the transportation, by
reason of accident, force majeure, or by virtue of the nature or defect of the articles, shall be
for the account and risk of the shipper.

The proof of these accidents is incumbent on the carrier.

ARTICLE 362. The carrier, however, shall be liable for the losses and damages arising from the
causes mentioned in the foregoing article if it is proved that they occurred on account of his
negligence or because he did not take the precautions usually adopted by careful persons,
unless the shipper committed fraud in the bill of lading, making him believe that the goods
were of a class or quality different from what they really were.

If, notwithstanding the precaution referred to in this article, the goods transported run the
risk of being lost on account of the nature or by reason of an unavoidable accident, without
there being time for the owners of the same to dispose thereof, the carrier shall proceed to
their sale, placing them for this purpose at the disposal, of the judicial authority or the
officials determined by special provisions.

ARTICLE 363. With the exception of the cases prescribed in the second paragraph of Article
361, the carrier shall be obliged to deliver the goods transported in the same condition in
which, according to the bill of lading, they were at the time of their receipt, without any
detriment or impairment, and should he not do so, he shall be obliged to pay the value of the
goods not delivered at the point where they should have been and at the time the delivery
should have taken place.

If part of the goods transported should be delivered the consignee may refuse to receive
them, when he proves that he can not make use thereof without the others.
ARTICLE 364. If the effect of the damage referred to in Article 361 should be only a reduction
in the value of the goods, the obligation of the carrier shall be reduced to the payment of the
amount of said reduction in value, after appraisal by experts.

ARTICLE 365. If, on account of the damage, the goods are rendered useless for purposes of
sale or consumption in the use for which they are properly destined the consignee shall not
be bound to receive them, and may leave them on the hands of the carrier, demanding
payment therefor at current market prices.

If among the goods damaged there should be some in good condition and without any defect
whatsoever, the foregoing provision shall be applicable with regard to the damaged ones,
and the consignee shall receive those which are sound, this separation being made by
distinct and separate articles, no object being divided for the purpose, unless the consignee
proves the impossibility of conveniently making use thereof in this form.

The same provision shall be applied to merchandise in bales or packages, with distinction of
the packages which appear sound.

ARTICLE 366. Within the twenty-four hours following the receipt of the merchandise a claim
may be brought against the carrier on account of damage or average found therein on
opening the packages, provided that the indications of the damage or average giving rise to
the claim can not be ascertained from the exterior of said packages, in which case said claim
would only be admitted on the receipt of the packages.

After the periods mentioned have elapsed, or after the transportation charges have been
paid, no claim whatsoever shall be admitted against the carrier with regard to the condition
in which the goods transported were delivered.

ARTICLE 367. If there should occur doubts and disputes between the consignee and the
carrier with regard to the condition of goods transported at the time of their delivery to the
former, the said goods shall be examined by experts appointed by the parties, and a third
one, in case of disagreement, appointed by the judicial authority, the result of the
examination being reduced to writing; and if the persons interested should not agree to the
report of the experts and could not settle their disputes, said judicial authority shall order the
deposits of the merchandise in a safe warehouse, and the parties interested shall make use of
their rights in the proper manner.

ARTICLE 368. The carrier must deliver to the consignee without any delay or difficulty the
merchandise received by him, by reason of the mere fact of being designated in the bill of
lading to receive it; and should said carrier not do so he shall be liable for the damages which
may arise therefrom.

ARTICLE 369. Should the consignee be not found at the domicile indicated in the bill of lading,
or should refuse to pay the transportation charges and expenses, or to receive the goods, the
deposit of said goods shall be ordered by the municipal judge, where there is no judge of first
instance, to be placed at the disposal of the shipper or sender, without prejudice to a person
having a better right, this deposit having all the effects of a delivery.
ARTICLE 370. If a period has been fixed for the delivery of the goods, it must be made within
the same, and otherwise the carrier shall pay the indemnity agreed upon in the bill of lading,
neither the shipper nor consignee being entitled to anything else.

Should no indemnity have been agreed upon and the delay exceeds the time fixed in the bill
of lading, the carrier shall be liable for the damages which may have been caused by the
delay.

ARTICLE 371. In cases of delay on account of the fault of the carrier, referred to in the
foregoing articles, the consignee may leave the goods transported on the hands of the carrier,
informing him thereof in writing before the arrival of the same at the point of destination.

When this abandonment occurs, the carrier shall satisfy the total value of the goods, as if they
had been lost or mislaid.

Should the abandonment not occur the indemnity for loss and damages on account of the
delays can not exceed the current price of the goods transported on the day and at the place
where the delivery was to have been made. The same provision shall be observed in all cases
where this indemnity is due.

ARTICLE 372. The appraisement of the goods which the carrier must pay in case of their being
lost or mislaid shall be fixed in accordance with what is stated in the bill of lading, no proofs
being allowed on the part of the shipper that there were among the goods declared therein
articles of greater value, and money.

Horses, vehicles, vessels, equipment, and all the other principal and accessory means of
transportation, shall be especially obligated in favor of the shipper, although with relation to
railroads said obligation shall be subordinated to the provisions of the laws of concession
with regard to property and to those of this Code with regard to the manner and form of
making attachments and retentions against the said companies.

ARTICLE 373. A carrier who delivers merchandise to a consignee by virtue of agreements or

combined services with other carriers shall assume the obligations of the carriers who
preceded him, reserving his right to proceed against the latter if he should not be directly
responsible for the fault which gives rise to the claim of the shipper or of the consignee.

The carrier making the delivery shall also assume all the actions and rights of those who may
have preceded him in the transportation.

The sender and the consignee shall have an immediate right of action against the carrier who
executed the transportation contract, or against the other carriers who received the goods
transported without reserve.

The reservations made by the latter shall not exempt them, however, from the liabilities they
may have incurred by reason of their own acts.

ARTICLE 374. The consignees to whom the remittance may have been made can not defer the
payment of the expenses and transportation charges on the goods that they received after
twenty-four hours have elapsed from the time of the delivery; and in case of delay in making
this payment, the carrier may request the judicial sale of the goods he transported to a
sufficient amount to cover the transportation charges and the expenses incurred.

ARTICLE 375. The goods transported shall be specifically obligated to answer for the
transportation charges and for the expenses and fees caused by the same during their
transportations, or until the time of their delivery.

This special right shall be limited to eight days after the delivery has been made, and after
said prescription the carrier shall have no further right of action than that corresponding to
an ordinary creditor.

ARTICLE 376. The preference of the carrier to the payment of what is due him for the
transportation and expenses of the goods delivered to the consignee shall not be affected by
the bankruptcy of the latter, provided the action is brought within the eight days mentioned
in the foregoing article.

ARTICLE 377. The carrier shall be liable for all the consequences arising from noncompliance
on his part with the formalities prescribed by the laws and regulations of the public
administration during the entire course of the trip and on the arrival at the point of
destination, except when his omission arises from his having been induced into error by false
statements of the shipper in the declaration of the merchandise.

If the carrier has acted in accordance with a formal order received from the shipper or
consignee of the merchandise both shall incur liability.

ARTICLE 378. Transportation agents shall be obliged to keep a special registry, with the
formalities required by Article 36, in which there shall be entered, in progressive order of
numbers and dates, all the goods the transportation of which is undertaken, stating the
circumstances required by Articles 350 et seq. for the responsive bills of lading.

ARTICLE 379. The provisions contained in Articles 349 et seq. shall also be understood as
relating to persons who, although they do not personally effect the transportation of
commercial goods, contract to do so through others, either as contractors for a special and
fixed transaction or as freight and transportation agents.

In either case they shall be subrogated to the place of the carriers with regard to the
obligations and liability of the latter, as well as with regard to their right.

BOOK III Maritime Commerce

TITLE I Vessels
ARTICLE 573. Merchant vessels constitute property which may be acquired and transferred by
any of the means recognized by law. The acquisition of a vessel must be included in a written
instrument, which shall not produce any effect with regard to third persons if not recorded in
the mercantile registry.

The ownership of a vessel shall also be acquired by the possession thereof in good faith for
three years, with a good title duly recorded.

In the absence of any of these requisites, uninterrupted possession for ten years shall be
necessary in order to acquire ownership.

A captain can not acquire by prescription the ship of which he is in command.

ARTICLE 574. The builders of vessels may employ the material and with regard to their
construction and rigging may follow the system which is most convenient to their interests.
Ship agents and seamen shall be subject to the provisions of the laws and regulations of the
public administration on navigation, customs, health, safety of the vessels, and other similar
provisions.

ARTICLE 575. Part owners of vessels shall enjoy the right of option of purchase and
withdrawal in the sales made to strangers; but they can only exercise it within the nine days
following the record of the sale in the registry and by delivering the price at once.

ARTICLE 576. The rigging, tackle, stores, and engine of a vessel, if it is a steamer, shall always
be understood as included in the sale thereof if they are owned by the vendor at the time of
the sale.

The arms, munitions of war, provisions, and fuel shall not be considered as included in the
sale.

The vendor shall be under the obligation to deliver to the purchaser a certificate of the record
of the vessel in the registry up to the date of the sale.

ARTICLE 577. If the alienation of the vessel should take place while said vessel is on a voyage,
the purchaser shall receive all the freights it earns from the time it received its last  cargo, and
the payment of the crew and other persons which go to make up its complement shall be
paid by the purchaser for the said voyage.

If the sale takes place after the arrival of the vessel at the port of its destination, the freights
shall belong to the vendors and he shall pay the crew and other persons which go to make up
its complement, unless there is an agreement to the contrary in either case.

ARTICLE 578. If, the steamer being on a voyage or in a foreign port, her owner or owners
should voluntarily alienate her either to Spaniards * or to foreigners domiciled in the capital
or in a port of another country, the bill of sale shall be executed before the consul of
Spain * of the port where she terminates her voyage, and said instrument shall have no effect
with regard to third persons if it is not recorded in the registry of the consulate. The consul
shall immediately forward a true copy of the bill of purchase of the vessel to the [commercial
registry] of the port where said vessel is recorded and registered.
In every case the alienation of the vessel must be stated, indicating whether the vendor
receives the full price or part thereof, or whether he retains any interest in said vessel in full or
in part. In case the sale is made to a Spaniard, * this fact shall be stated in the certificate of
navigation.

When, the ship being on a voyage, it should be rendered useless for navigation, the captain
shall apply to the judge or court of competent jurisdiction of the port of arrival, should it be a
foreign port, to the consul of Spain, * should there be one or to the judge, or court, or local
authority in the absence of the former; and the consul, or the judge, or court, or in their
absence, the local authority, shall order an examination of the vessel to be made.

If the consignee or the underwriter should reside at said port, or should have representatives
there, they must be cited in order to take part in the proceedings for the account of whom it
may concern.

ARTICLE 579. After the damage to the vessel has been proven as well as the impossibility of
her being repaired, to continue the voyage, her sale at public auction shall be ordered,
subject to the following rules:

1. The hull of the vessel, her rigging, engines, stores, and other articles shall be appraised by
means of an inventory, said proceedings being brought to the notice of the persons who may
wish to take part in the auction.

2. The order or decree ordering the public auction shall be posted in the usual places, and
shall be advertised in the newspapers of the port where the auction is to be held, should there
be any, and in the other newspapers which the court may determine.

The period which may be fixed for the auction can not be less than twenty days.

3. These advertisements shall be repeated every ten days, and their publication shall be
stated in the proceedings.

4. The auction shall be held on the day fixed, with the formalities prescribed in the common
law for judicial sales.

5. If the sale should take place when the vessel is in a foreign country, the special provisions
governing such cases shall be observed.

ARTICLE 580. In all judicial sales of vessels for the payment of creditors, the said creditors
shall have preference in the order stated:

1. The credits in favor of the public treasury proven by means of an official certificate of the
competent authority.

2. The judicial costs of the proceedings, according to an appraisement approved by the judge
or court.

3. The pilotage charges, tonnage dues, and the other sea or port charges, proven by means of
proper certificates of the officers intrusted with the collection.
4. The salaries of the caretakers and watchmen of the vessel and any other expense
connected with the preservation of said vessel, from the time of arrival until her sale, which
appear to have been paid or are due by virtue of a true account approved by the judge or
court.

5. The rent of the warehouse where the rigging and stores of the vessel have been taken care
of, according to contract.

6. The salaries due the captain and crew during their last voyage, which shall be verified by
virtue of the liquidation made from the rolls of the crew and account books of the vessel,
approved by the chief of the Bureau of Merchant Marine where there is one, and in his
absence by the consul, or judge, or court.

7. The reimbursement for the parts of the freight the captain may have sold in order to repair
the vessel, provided the sale has been ordered by a judicial instrument executed with the
formalities required in such cases, and recorded in the certificate of the registry of the vessel.

8. The part of the price which has not been paid the last vendor, the credits pending for the
payment of material and work in the construction of the vessel, when it has not navigated,
and those arising from the repair and equipment of the vessel and its provisioning with
victuals and fuel during its last voyage.

In order that the credits provided for in this subdivision may enjoy the preference they must
appear by contracts recorded in the commercial registry, or if they were contracted for the
vessel while on a voyage and said vessel has not returned to the port of her registry, they
must be made under the authority required for such cases and entered in the certificate of
registry of the said vessel.

9. The amounts borrowed on bottomry bonds before the departure of the vessel, proven by
means of the contracts executed according to law and recorded in the commercial registry;
the amounts borrowed during the voyage with the authority mentioned in the foregoing
subdivision, filling the same requisites, and the insurance premium, proven by the policy of
the contract or certificate taken from the books of the broker.

10. The indemnity due the shippers for the value of the goods shipped, which were not
delivered to the consignees, or for averages suffered for which the vessel is liable, provided
either appear in a judicial or arbitration decision.

ARTICLE 581. If the proceeds of the sale are not sufficient to pay all the creditors included in
one number or grade, the amount shall be divided among them pro rata.

ARTICLE 582. After the bill of the judicial sale at auction has been executed and recorded in
the commercial registry, all the other liabilities of the vessel in favor of the creditors shall be
considered canceled.

But if the sale should have been voluntary, and took place while the vessel was on a voyage,
the creditors shall retain their rights against the vessel until her return to the port of her
registry, and three months after the record of sale in the commercial registry, or after her
arrival.
ARTICLE 583. If the ship being on a voyage the captain should find it necessary to contract
one or more of the obligations mentioned in Nos. 8 and 9 of Article 580, he shall apply to the
judge or court if he is in Spanish * territory, and otherwise to the consul of Spain, * should
there be one, and, in his absence to the judge or court or to the proper local authority,
presenting the certificate of the registry of the vessel treated of in Article 612, and the
instruments proving the obligation contracted.

The judge or court, the consul or the local authority as the case may be, in view of the result
of the proceedings instituted, shall make a temporary memorandum in the certificate of their
result, in order that it may be recorded in the registry when the vessel returns to the port of
her registry, or so that it can be admitted as a legal and preferred obligation in case of sale
before the return, by reason of the sale of the vessel by virtue of a declaration of
unseaworthiness.

The lack of this formality shall make the captain personally liable to the creditors who may be
prejudiced through his fault.

ARTICLE 584. The vessels subject to the liability for the credits mentioned in Article 580 may
be attached and judicially sold in the manner prescribed in Article 579, in the port in which
they are, at the instance of any of the creditors; but if they should be freighted and ready to
sail the attachment can not take place except for debts contracted for the preparation and
provisioning of the vessel for the same voyage, and even then the attachment shall be
dissolved if any person interested in her sailing should give bond for the return of the vessel
within the period fixed in the certificate of navigation, and binding himself to pay the debt in
so far as it may be legal, should the vessel be delayed in her return even if it were caused by
some fortuitous event.

For debts of any other kind whatsoever not included in the said Article 580, the vessel can
only be attached in the port of her registry.

ARTICLE 585. For all purposes of law not modified or restricted by the provisions of this Code,
vessels shall continue to be considered as personal property.

TITLE II Persons Who May Take Part in Maritime Commerce

SECTION I Owners of Vessels and Ship Agents

ARTICLE 586. The owner of a vessel and the agent shall be civilly liable for the acts of the
captain and for the obligations contracted by the latter to repair, equip, and provision the
vessel, provided the creditor proves that the amount claimed was invested therein.

By agent is understood the person intrusted with the provisioning of a vessel, or who
represents her in the port in which she happens to be.

ARTICLE 587. The agent shall also be civilly liable for the indemnities in favor of third persons
which arise from the conduct of the captain in the care of the goods which the vessel carried;
but he may exempt himself therefrom by abandoning the vessel with all her equipments and
the freight he may have earned during the voyage.

ARTICLE 588. Neither the owner of the vessel nor the agent shall be liable for the obligations
contracted by the captain if the latter exceeds his powers and privileges which are his by
reason of his position or have been conferred upon him by the former.

However, if the amounts claimed were made use of for the benefit of the vessel, the owner or
agent shall be liable.

ARTICLE 589. If two or more persons should be part owners of a merchant vessel, an
association shall be presumed as established by the part owners.

This association shall be governed by the resolutions of a majority of the members.

A majority shall be the relative majority of the voting members.

If there should be only two part owners, in case of disagreement the vote of the member
having the largest interest shall be decisive. If the interests are equal, it shall be decided by
lot.

The representation of the smallest part in the ownership shall have one vote; and
proportionately the other part owners as many votes as they have parts equal to the smallest
one.

A vessel can not be detained, attached or levied upon execution in her entirety for the private
debts of a part owner, but the proceedings shall be limited to the interest the debtor may
have in the vessel, without interfering with her navigation.

ARTICLE 590. The owners of a vessel shall be civilly liable in the proportion of their
contribution to the common fund, for the results of the acts of the captain, referred to in
Article 587.

Each part owner may exempt himself from this liability by the abandonment before a notary
of the part of the vessel belonging to him.

ARTICLE 591. All the part owners shall be liable, in proportion to their respective ownership,
for the expenses of repairs to the vessel, and for other expenses which are incurred by virtue
of a resolution of the majority.

They shall likewise be liable in the same proportion for the expenses of maintenance,
equipment, and provisioning of the vessel, necessary for navigation.

ARTICLE 592. The resolutions of the majority with regard to the repair, equipment, and
provisioning of the vessel in the port of departure shall bind the majority unless the partners
in the minority renounce their participation therein, which must be acquired by the other part
owners after a judicial appraisement of the value of the portion or portions assigned.

The resolutions of the majority relating to the dissolution of the association and sale of the
vessel shall also be binding on the minority.
The sale of the vessel must take place at a public auction, subject to the provisions of the law
of civil procedure unless the part owners unanimously agree otherwise, the right of option to
purchase and to withdraw mentioned in Article 575 being always reserved in favor of said part
owners.

ARTICLE 593. The owners of a vessel shall have preference in her charter to other persons,
offering equal conditions and price. If two or more of the former should claim said right the
one having greater interest shall be preferred, and should they have an equal interest it shall
be decided by lot.

ARTICLE 594. The part owners shall elect the manager who is to represent them in the
capacity of agent.

The appointment of director or agent shall be revocable at the will of the members.

ARTICLE 595. The agent, be he at the same time an owner of a vessel or a manager for an
owner or for an association of co-owners, must be qualified to trade and must be recorded in
the merchant's registry of the province.

The agent shall represent the ownership of the vessel, and may in his own name and in such
capacity take judicial and extrajudicial steps in all that relates to commerce.

ARTICLE 596. The agent may discharge the duties of captain of the vessel, subject, in every
case, to the provisions contained in Article 609.

If two or more co-owners request the position of captain, the disagreement shall be decided
by a vote of the members; and if the vote should result in a tie, the position shall be given to
the part owner having the larger interest in the vessel.

If the interest of the petitioners should be the same, and there should be a tie, the matter
shall be decided by lot.

ARTICLE 597. The agent shall select and come to an agreement with the captain, and shall
contract in the name of the owners, who shall be bound in all that refers to repairs, details of
equipment, armament, provisions, fuel, and freight of the vessel, and, in general, in all that
relates to the requirements of navigation.

ARTICLE 598. The agent can not order a new voyage, nor make contracts for a new charter,
nor insure the vessel, without the authority of her owner or by virtue of a resolution of the
majority of the co-owners, unless these privileges were granted him in the certificate of his
appointment.

If he should insure the vessel without authority therefor he shall be secondarily liable for the
solvency of the underwriter.

ARTICLE 599. The managing agent of an association, shall give his co-owners an account of
the results of each voyage of the vessel, without prejudice to always having the books and
correspondence relating to the vessel and to its voyages at the disposal of the same.
ARTICLE 600. After the account of the managing agent has been approved by a relative
majority, the co-owners shall satisfy the expenses in proportion to their interest, without
prejudice to the civil or criminal actions which the minority may deem fit to institute
afterwards.

In order to enforce the payment, the managing agent shall have a right of action to secure
execution, which shall be instituted by virtue of a resolution of the majority, and without
further proceedings than the acknowledgment of the signatures of the persons who voted the
resolution.

ARTICLE 601. Should there be any profits, the co-owners may demand of the managing agent
the amount due them, by means of an executory action without further requisites than the
acknowledgment of the signatures of the instrument approving the account.

ARTICLE 602. The agent shall indemnify the captain for all the expenses he may have incurred
from his own funds or from those of other persons, for the benefit of the vessel.

ARTICLE 603. Before a vessel goes out to sea the agent shall have at his discretion, a right to
discharge the captain and members of the crew whose contract did not state a definite period
nor a definite voyage, paying them the salaries earned according to their contracts, and
without any indemnity whatsoever, unless there is a special and specific agreement in
respect thereto.

ARTICLE 604. If the captain or any other member of the crew should be discharged during the
voyage, they shall receive their salary until the return to the place where the contract was
made, unless there are good reasons for the discharge, all in accordance with Articles 636 et
seq. of this Code.

ARTICLE 605. If the contracts of the captain and members of the crew with the agent should
be for a definite period or voyage, they can not be discharged until the fulfillment of their
contracts, except for reasons of insubordination in serious matters, robbery, theft, habitual
drunkenness, and damage caused to the vessel or to its cargo by malice or manifest or proven
negligence.

ARTICLE 606. If the captain should be a part owner in the vessel, he can not be discharged
without the agent returning him the amount of his interest therein, which, in the absence of
an agreement between the parties, shall be appraised by experts appointed in the manner
established in the law of civil procedure.

ARTICLE 607. If the captain who is a part owner should have obtained the command of the
vessel by virtue of a special agreement contained in the articles of co-partnership, he can not
be deprived thereof except for the reasons mentioned in Article 605.

ARTICLE 608. In case of the voluntary sale of the vessel, all contracts between the agent and
captain shall terminate, the right to proper indemnity being reserved in favor of the captain,
according to the agreements made with the agent.

They vessel sold shall remain subject to the security of the payment of said indemnity if, after
the action against the vendor has been instituted, the latter should be insolvent.
 SECTION II Captains and Masters of Vessels

ARTICLE 609. Captains and masters of vessels must be Spaniards * having legal capacity to
bind themselves in accordance with this Code, and must prove that they have the skill,
capacity, and qualifications required to command and direct the vessel, as established by
marine laws, ordinances, or regulations, or by those of navigation, and that they are not
disqualified according to the same for the discharge of the duties of that position. t

If the owner of a vessel desires to be the captain thereof and does not have the legal
qualifications therefor, he shall limit himself to the financial administration of the vessel, and
shall intrust her navigation to a person possessing the qualifications required by said
ordinances and regulations.

ARTICLE 610. The following powers are inherent in the position of captain or master of a
vessel:

1. To appoint or make contracts with the crew in the absence of the agent and propose said
crew, should said agent be present; but the agent shall not be permitted to employ any
member against the captain's express refusal.

2. To command the crew and direct the vessel to the port of its destination, in accordance
with the instructions he may have received from the agent.

3. To impose, in accordance with the agreements and the laws and regulations of the
merchants marine, on board the vessel, correctional punishment upon those who do not
comply with his orders or who conduct themselves against discipline, holding a preliminary
investigation on the crimes committed on board the vessel on the high seas, which shall be
turned over to the authorities, who are to take cognizance thereof, at the first port touched.

4. To make contracts for the charter of the vessel in the absence of the agent or of her
consignee, acting in accordance with the instructions received and protecting the interests of
the owner most carefully.

5. To adopt all the measures which may be necessary to keep the vessel well supplied and
equipped, purchasing for the purpose all that may be necessary, provided there is no time to
request instructions of the agent.

6. To make, in similar urgent cases and on a voyage, the repairs to the hull and engines of the
vessel and to her rigging and equipment which are absolutely necessary in order for her to be
able to continue and conclude her voyage; but if she should arrive at a point where there is a
consignee of the vessel, he shall act in concurrence with the latter.

ARTICLE 611. In order to comply with the obligations mentioned in the foregoing article, the
captain, when he has no funds and does not expect to receive any from the agent, shall
procure the same in the successive order stated below:

1. By requesting said funds of the consignees or correspondents of a vessel.

2. By applying to the consignees of the cargo or to the persons interested therein.

3. By drawing on the agent.

4. By borrowing the amount required by means of a bottomry bond.

5. By selling a sufficient amount of the cargo to cover the amount absolutely necessary to
repair the vessel, and to equip her to pursue the voyage.

In the two latter cases he must apply to the judicial authority of the port, if in Spain  * and to
the Spanish * consul, if in a foreign country; and where there should be none, to the local
authority, proceeding in accordance with the prescriptions of Article 583, and with the
provisions of the law of civil procedure.

ARTICLE 612. The following obligations are inherent in the office of captain:

1. To have on board before starting on a voyage a detailed inventory of the hull, engines,
rigging, tackle, stores, and other equipments of the vessel; the navigation certificate; the roll
of the persons who make up the crew of the vessel, and the contracts entered into with the
crew; the list of passengers; the health certificate; the certificate of the registry proving the
ownership of the vessel, and all the obligations which encumber the same up to that date; the
charters or authenticated copies thereof; the invoices or manifest of the cargo, and the
instrument of the expert visit or inspection, should it have been made at the port of
departure.

2. To have a copy of this Code on board.

3. To have three folioed and stamped books, placing at the beginning of each one a note of
the number of folios it contains, signed by the maritime official, and in his absence by the
competent authority.

In the first book, which shall be called "log book," he shall enter every day the condition of
the atmosphere, the prevailing winds, the course sailed, the rigging carried, the horsepower
of the engines, the distance covered, the maneuvers executed, and other incidents of
navigation. He shall also enter the damage suffered by the vessel in her hull, engines, rigging,
and tackle, no matter what is its cause, as well as the imperfections and averages of the
cargo, and the effects and consequence of the jettison, should there be any; and in cases of
grave resolutions which require the advice or a meeting of the officers of the vessel, or even of
the passengers and crew, he shall record the decision adopted. For the informations
indicated he shall make use of the binnacle book, and of the steam or engine book kept by
the engineer.

In the second book, called the "accounting book," he shall enter all the amounts collected
and paid for the account of the vessel, entering specifically article by article, the sources of
the collection, and the amounts invested in provisions, repairs, acquisition of rigging or
goods, fuel, outfits, wages, and all other expenses. He shall furthermore enter therein a list of
all the members of the crew, stating their domiciles, their wages and salaries, and the
amounts they may have received on account, either directly or by delivery to their families.

In the third book, called "freight book," he shall record the entry and exit of all the goods,
stating their marks and packages, names of the shippers and of the consignees, ports of
loading and unloading, and the freight earned. In the same book he shall record the names
and places of sailing of the passengers and the number of packages of which their baggage
consists, and the price of the passage.

4. To make, before receiving the freight, with the officers of the crew, and the two experts, if
required by the shippers and passengers, an examination of the vessel, in order to ascertain
whether she is watertight, and whether the rigging and engines are in good condition; and if
she has the equipment required for good navigation, preserving a certificate of the
memorandum of this inspection, signed by all the persons who may have taken part therein,
under their liability.

The experts shall be appointed one by the captain of the vessel and the other one by the
persons who request the examination, and in case of disagreement a third shall be appointed
by the marine authority of the port.

5. To remain constantly on board the vessel with the crew during the time the freight is taken
on board and carefully watch the stowage thereof; not to consent to any merchandise or
goods of a dangerous character to be taken on, such as inflammable or explosive substances,
without the precautions which are recommended for their packing, management and
isolation; not to permit that any freight be carried on deck which by reason of its disposition,
volume, or weight makes the work of the sailors difficult, and which might endanger the
safety of the vessel; and if, on account of the nature of the merchandise, the special character
of the shipment, and principally the favorable season it takes place, he allows merchandise to
be carried on deck, he must hear the opinion of the officers of the vessel, and have the
consent of the shippers and of the agent.

6. To demand a pilot at the expense of the vessel whenever required by navigation, and
principally when a port, canal, or river, or a roadstead or anchoring place is to be entered with
which neither he, the officers nor the crew are acquainted.

7. To be on deck at the time of sighting land and to take command on entering and leaving
ports, canals, roadsteads, and rivers, unless there is a pilot on board discharging his duties.
He shall not spend the night away from the vessel except for serious causes or by reason of
official business.

8. To present himself, when making a port in distress, to the maritime authority if in

Spain * and to the Spanish * consul if in a foreign country, before twenty-four hours have
elapsed, and make a statement of the name, registry, and port of departure of the vessel, of
its cargo, and reason of arrival, which declaration shall be vised by the authority or by the
consul if after examining the same it is found to be acceptable, giving the captain the proper
certificate in order to show his arrival under stress and the reasons therefor. In the absence of
marine officials or of the consul, the declaration must be made before the local authority.

9. To take the steps necessary before the competent authority in order to enter in the
certificate of the Commercial Registry of the vessel the obligations which he may contract in
accordance with Article 583.

10. To put in a safe place and keep all the papers and belongings of any members of the crew
who might die on the vessel, drawing up a detailed inventory, in the presence of passengers
as witnesses, and, in their absence, of members of the crew.
11. To conduct himself according to the rules and precepts contained in the instructions of
the agent, being liable for all that he may do in violation thereof.

12. To give an account to the agent from the port where the vessel arrives, of the reason
thereof, taking advantage of the semaphore, telegraph, mail, etc., according to the cases;
notify him the freight he may have received, stating the name and domicile of the shippers,
freight earned, and amounts borrowed on bottomry bond, advise him of his departure, and
give him any information and data which may be of interest.

13. To observe the rules on the situation of lights and evolutions to prevent collisions.

14. To remain on board in case of danger to the vessel, until all hope to save her is lost, and
before abandoning her to hear the officers of the crew, abiding by the decision of the
majority; and if he should have to take a boat he shall take with him, before anything else, the
books and papers, and then the articles of most value, being obliged to prove in case of the
loss of the books and papers that he did all he could to save them.

15. In case of wreck he shall make the proper protest in due form at the first port reached,
before the competent authority or the Spanish * consul, within twenty-four hours, stating
therein all the incidents of the wreck, in accordance with case 8 of this article.

16. To comply with the obligations imposed by the laws and rules of navigation, customs,
health, and others.

ARTICLE 613. A captain who navigates for freight in common or on shares can not make any
transaction for his exclusive account, and should he do so the profit shall belong to the other
persons in interest, and the losses shall be for his own exclusive account.

ARTICLE 614. A captain who, having made an agreement to make a voyage, should not fulfill
his obligation, without being prevented by an accident case or by  force majeure, shall pay for
all the losses his action may cause, without prejudice to criminal penalties which may be
proper.

ARTICLE 615. Without the consent of the agent, the captain can not have himself substituted
by another person; and should he do so, besides being liable for all the acts of the substitute
and bound to the indemnities mentioned in the foregoing article, the substitute as well as the
captain may be discharged by the agent.

ARTICLE 616. If the provisions and fuel of the vessel are consumed before arriving at the port
of destination, the captain shall decide, with the consent of the officers of the same, to make
the nearest port to get a supply of either; but if there are persons on board who have
provisions of their own he may force them to turn said provisions over for the common
consumption of all persons on board, paying the price thereof immediately, or at the latest, at
the first port reached.

ARTICLE 617. The captain can not contract loans on respondentia, and should he do so the
contracts shall be void.

Neither can he borrow money on bottomry for his own transactions, except on the portion of
the vessel he owns, provided no money has been previously borrowed on the whole vessel,
and provided there does not exist any other kind of lien or obligation thereon. When he is
permitted to do so, he must necessarily state what interest he has in the vessel.

In case of violation of this article the principal, interest, and costs shall be charged to the
private account of the captain, and the agent may furthermore have the right to discharge
him.

ARTICLE 618. The captain shall be civilly liable to the agent, and the latter to the third
persons who may have made contracts with the former —

1. For all the damages suffered by the vessel and his cargo by reason of want of skill or
negligence on his part. If a misdemeanor or crime has been committed he shall be liable in
accordance with the Penal Code.

2. For all the thefts committed by the crew, reserving his right of action against the guilty
parties.

3. For the losses, fines, and confiscations imposed an account of violation of the laws and
regulations of customs, police, health, and navigation.

4. For the losses and damages caused by mutinies on board the vessel, or by reason of faults
committed by the crew in the service and defense of the same, if he does not prove that he
made full use of his authority to prevent or avoid them.

5. For those arising by reason of an undue use of powers and non-fulfillment of the
obligations which are his in accordance with Articles 610 and 612.

6. For those arising by reason of his going out of his course or taking a course which he should
not have taken without sufficient cause, in the opinion of the officers of the vessel, at a
meeting with the shippers or supercargoes who may be on board.

No exception whatsoever shall exempt him from this obligation.

7. For those arising by reason of his voluntarily entering a port other than his destination, with
the exception of the cases or without the formalities referred to in Article 612.

8. For those arising by reason of the non-observance of the provisions contained in the
regulations for lights and evolutions for the purpose of preventing collisions.

ARTICLE 619. The captain shall be liable for the cargo from the time it is turned over to him at
the dock, or afloat alongside the ship, at the port of loading until he delivers it on the shores
or on the discharging wharf, of the port of unloading unless the contrary has been expressly
agreed upon.

ARTICLE 620. The captain shall not be liable for the damages caused to the vessel or to
the cargo by reason of  force majeure; but he shall always be so — no agreement to the
contrary being valid — for those arising through his own fault.

Neither shall he be personally liable for the obligations he may have contracted for the repair,
equipment, and provisioning of the vessel, which shall be incurred by the agent, unless the
former has expressly bound himself personally or signed a draft or promissory note in his
name.

ARTICLE 621. A captain who borrows money on bottomry, or who pledges or sells
merchandise or provisions in other cases and without the formalities prescribed in this Code,
shall be liable for the principle, interest, and costs, and shall indemnify for the damages he
may cause.

The captain who commits fraud in his accounts shall reimburse the amount defrauded, and
shall be subject to the provisions contained in the Penal Code.

ARTICLE 622. If when on a voyage the captain should receive news of the appearance of
privateers or men of war against his flag, he shall be obliged to make the nearest neutral port,
inform his agent or shippers, and await an occasion to sail under convoy or until the danger is
over or to receive final orders from the agent or shippers.

ARTICLE 623. If he should find himself being attacked by a privateer and after having done all
that was possible to avoid the encounter and have resisted the delivery of the equipment of
the vessel or of its cargo, they should be forcibly taken away from him, or he should be
obliged to deliver them, he shall make an entry in his freight book and shall prove the fact
before the competent authority at the first port he touches.

After the  force majeure has been proven, he shall be exempted from liability.

ARTICLE 624. A captain whose vessel has gone through a hurricane or who believes that the
cargo has suffered damages or averages, shall make a protest thereon before the competent
authority at the first port he touches within the twenty-four hours following his arrival, and
shall ratify it within the same period when he arrives at the place of his destination,
immediately preceding with the proof of the facts, it not being permitted to open the hatches
until this has been done.

The captain shall proceed in the same manner if, the vessel having been wrecked, he is saved
alone or with part of his crew, in which case he shall appear before the nearest authority, and
make a sworn statement of the facts.

The authority or the consul abroad shall verify the said facts, receiving a sworn statement of
the members of the crew and passengers who may have been saved, and taking the other
steps which may assist in arriving at the facts, drafting a certificate of the result of the
proceedings in the log book and in that of the sailing mate, and shall deliver the original
records of the proceedings to the captain, stamped and folioed, with a memorandum of the
folios, which he must rubricate, for their presentation to the judge or court of the port of
destination.

The statement of the captain shall be believed if it is in accordance with those of the crew and
passengers; if they disagree, the latter shall be accepted, unless there is proof to the contrary.

ARTICLE 625. The captain, under his personal liability, as soon as he arrives at the port of
destination, obtains the necessary permission from the health and customs officers and
fulfills the other formalities required by the regulations of the administration, shall turn over
the cargo, without any defalcation, to the consignees, and, in a proper case, the vessel,
rigging, and freights to the agent.

If, by reason of the absence of the consignee or on account of the nonappearance of a legal
holder of the invoices, the captain does not know to whom he is to make the legal delivery of
the cargo, he shall place it at the disposal of the proper judge or court or authority, in order
that he may decide with regard to its deposit, preservation, and custody.

SECTION III Officers and Crews of Vessels

ARTICLE 626. In order to be a sailing mate it shall be necessary:

1. To have the conditions required by the marine or navigation laws or regulations.

2. Not to be disqualified in accordance therewith for the discharge of the position.

ARTICLE 627. The sailing mate, as the second chief of the vessel and unless the agent orders
otherwise, shall take the place of the captain in cases of absence, sickness, or death, and shall
then assume all his powers, obligations, and responsibilities.

ARTICLE 628. The sailing mate must supply himself with charts of the waters which are to be
navigated, with the maps and quadrants or sextants which are in use and which are necessary
for the discharge of his duties, being liable for the accidents which may arise by reason of his
fault in this matter.

ARTICLE 629. The sailing mate shall personally and specially keep a book folioed and
stamped on all its pages, called the "binnacle book", with a memorandum at the beginning
stating the number of folios it contains, signed by the competent authority, and shall enter
therein daily the distance and course travelled, the variations of the needle, the leeway, the
direction and force of the wind, the condition of the atmosphere and of the sea, the rigging
set, the latitude and longitude observed, the number of furnaces fired, the steam pressure,
the number of revolutions, and under the name of "incidents" the revolutions made, the
meetings with other vessels, and all the particulars and accidents which may occur during the
voyage.

ARTICLE 630. In order to change the course and to take the one most convenient for a good
voyage of the vessel, the sailing mate shall come to an agreement with the captain. If the
latter should object, the sailing mate shall make the remarks he may consider necessary in
the presence of the other officers of the vessel. If the captain should still insist on his
objection, the sailing mate shall make the proper protest, signed by him and by another one
of the officers in the log book, and shall obey the captain, who shall be the only one liable for
the consequences of his order.

ARTICLE 631. The sailing mate shall be liable for all the damages suffered by the vessel and
cargo by reason of his negligence or want of skill, without prejudice to the criminal liability
which may arise, if a felony or misdemeanor were committed.

ARTICLE 632. It shall be the duty of the second mate:

1. To watch over the preservation of the hull, and rigging of the vessel, and to take charge of
the tackle and equipment which make up her outfit, suggesting to the captain the repairs
necessary and the replacement of the goods and implements which are rendered useless and
lost.

2. To take care that the cargo is well arranged, keeping the vessel always ready for evolutions.

3. To preserve order, discipline, and good service among the crew, requesting the necessary
orders and instructions of the captain, and quickly informing him of any occurrence in which
the intervention of his authority may be necessary.

4. To assign to each sailor the work he is to do on board, in accordance with the instructions
received, and see that it is exactly and carefully carried out.

5. To take charge by inventory of the rigging and all the equipments of the vessel, if it should
be laid up, unless the agent has ordered otherwise.

With regard to engineers the following rules shall govern:

1. In order to be taken on board as a marine engineer forming part of the complement of a

merchant vessel it shall be necessary to possess the qualifications which the laws and
regulations require, and not to be disqualified in accordance therewith to hold said position.
Engineers shall be considered as officers of the vessel, but they shall exercise no command
nor intervention except that which refers to the motive power.

2. When there are two or more engineers on one vessel, one of them shall be the chief, and
the other engineers and all the personnel of the engines shall be under his orders; he shall
furthermore have the motive power under his charge, as well as the spare pieces,
instruments, and implements belonging thereto, the fuel, the lubricating material and, finally,
all which comes under the jurisdiction of an engineer on board a vessel.

3. He shall keep the engines and boilers in good condition and in state of cleanliness, and
shall order what may be proper in order that they may always be ready for regular use, being
liable for the accidents or damages which may arise by reason of his want of skill or
negligence to the motive apparatus, or to the vessel and cargo, without prejudice to the
criminal liability which may be proper if a felony or misdemeanor is proven.

4. He shall make no change in the motive apparatus, nor shall he repair the averages he may
have noticed in the same, nor change the normal speed of its movement without the prior
authority of the captain, to whom, if he should object to their being made, he shall state the
reasons he may deem proper in the presence of the other engineers or officers; and if,
notwithstanding this, the captain should insist on his objection, the chief engineer shall make
the proper protest, entering the same in the engine book, and shall obey the captain, who
shall be the only one liable for the consequences of his order.

5. He shall inform the captain of any average which may occur to the motive apparatus, and
shall inform him when it may be necessary to stop the engines for some time, or when any
other incident occurs in his department of which the captain should be immediately
informed, frequently advising him furthermore of the consumption of fuel and lubricating
material.
6. He shall keep a book or registry called the "Engine Book," in which there shall be entered
all the data that refer to the work of the engines, such as, for example, the number of furnaces
fired, the steam pressure in the boilers and cylinders, the vacuum in the condenser, the
temperatures, the degree of saturation of the water, the consumption of fuel and lubricating
material, and under the heading of "Noteworthy occurrences" the average and imperfections
which occur in the engines and boilers, the causes therefor, and the means employed to
repair the same. There shall also be stated, taking the information from the binnacle book,
and direction of the wind, the rigging set, and the speed of the vessel.

ARTICLE 633. The second mate shall take command of the vessel in case of the impossibility
or disability of the captain and sailing mate, assuming in such case their powers and liability.

ARTICLE 634. The captain may make up his crew with the number he may consider advisable,
and in the absence of Spanish * sailors he may ship foreigners residing in the country, the
number thereof not to exceed one-fifth of the total crew. If in foreign ports the captain should
not find a sufficient number of Spanish *sailors, he may make up the crew with foreigners,
with the consent of the consul or marine authorities.

The agreements which the captain may make with the members of the crew and others who
go to make up the complement of the vessels, to which reference is made in Article 612, must
be reduced to writing in the account book without the intervention of a notary public or clerk,
signed by the parties thereto, and vised by the marine authority if they are executed in
Spanish * territory, or by the consuls or consular agents of Spain * if executed abroad, stating
therein all the obligations which each one contracts and all the rights they acquire, said
authorities taking care that these obligations and rights are recorded in a concise and clear
manner, which will not give rise to doubts or claims.

The captain shall take care to read to them the articles of this Code, which concern them,
stating that they were read in the said document.

If the book includes the requisites prescribed in Article 612, and there should not appear any
signs of alterations in its clauses, it shall be admitted as evidence in questions which may
arise between the captain and the crew with regard to the agreements contained therein and
the amounts paid on account of the same.

Every member of the crew may request a copy of the captain, signed by the latter, of the
agreement and of the liquidation of his wages, as they appear in the book.

ARTICLE 635. A sailor who has been contracted to serve on a vessel can not rescind his
contract nor fail to comply therewith except by reason of a legitimate impediment which may
have occurred.

Neither can he pass from the service of one vessel to another without obtaining the written
consent of the vessel on which he may be.

If, without obtaining said permission, the sailor who has signed for one vessel should sign for
another one, the second contract shall be void, and the captain may choose between forcing
him to fulfill the service to which he first bound himself or look for a person to substitute him
at his expense.
Said sailor shall furthermore lose the wages earned on his first contract to the benefit of the
vessel for which he may have signed.

A captain who, knowing that a sailor is in the service of another vessel, should have made a
new agreement with him, without having requested the permission referred to in the
foregoing paragraphs, shall be personally liable to the captain of the vessel to which the
sailor first belonged for that part of the indemnity, referred to in the third paragraph of this
article, which the sailor could not pay.

ARTICLE 636. Should a fixed period for which a sailor has signed not be stated, he can not be
discharged until the end of the return voyage to the port where he enrolled.

ARTICLE 637. Neither can the captain discharge a sailor during the time of his contract except
for sufficient cause, the following being considered as such:

1. The perpetration of a crime which disturbs order on the vessel.

2. Repeated offenses of insubordination, against discipline, or against the fulfillment of the

service.

3. Repeated incapacity or negligence in the fulfillment of the service to be rendered.

4. Habitual drunkenness.

5. Any occurrence which incapacitates the sailor to carry out the work under his charge, with
the exception of the provisions contained in Article 644.

6. Desertion.

The captain may, however, before setting out on a voyage and without giving any reason
whatsoever, refuse to permit a sailor he may have engaged from going on board and may
leave him on land, in which case he will be obliged to pay him his wages as if he had rendered
services.

This indemnity shall be paid from the funds of the vessel if the captain should have acted for
reasons of prudence and in the interest of the safety and good service of the former. Should
this not be the case, it shall be paid by the captain personally.

After the vessel has sailed, and during the voyage and until the conclusion thereof, the
captain can not abandon any member of his crew on land or on the sea, unless, by reason of
being guilty of some crime, his imprisonment and delivery to the competent authority is
proper in the first port touched, which will be obligatory on the captain.

ARTICLE 638. If, the crew having been engaged, the voyage is revoked by the will of the agent
or of the charterers before or after the vessel has put to sea or if the vessel is in the same
manner given a different destination than that fixed in the agreement with the crew, the latter
shall be indemnified because of the rescission of the contract according to the case, viz:

1. If the revocation of the voyage should be decided before the departure of the vessel from
the port, each sailor engaged shall be given one month's salary, besides what may be due him
in accordance with his contract, for the services rendered to the vessel up to the date of the
revocation.

2. If the agreement should have been for a fixed amount for the whole voyage, there shall be
graduated what may be due for said month and days, calculating the same in proportion to
the estimated duration of the voyage, in the judgment of experts, in the manner established
in the law of civil procedure; and if the proposed voyage should be of such short duration that
it is calculated at one month more or less, the indemnity shall be fixed for fifteen days,
discounting in all cases the sums advanced.

3. If the revocation should take place after the vessel has put to sea, the sailors engaged for a
fixed amount for the voyage shall receive the salary which may have been offered them in full
as if the voyage had terminated, and those engaged by the month shall receive the amount
corresponding to the time they might have been on board and to the time they may require to
arrive at the port of destination, the captain being obliged, furthermore, to pay said sailors
the passage to the said port or to the port of sailing of the vessel, as may be convenient for
them.

4. If the agent or the charterers of the vessel should give said vessel a destination other than
that fixed in the agreement, and the members of the crew should not agree thereto, they shall
be given by way of indemnity half the amount fixed in case No. 1, besides what may be owed
them for the part of the monthly wages corresponding to the days which have elapsed from
the date of their agreements.

If they accept the change, and the voyage, on account of the greater distance or for other
reasons, should give rise to an increase of wages, the latter shall be privately regulated, or
through amicable arbitrators in case of disagreement. Even though the voyage may be to a
nearer point, this shall not give rise to a reduction in the wages agreed upon.

If the revocation or change of the voyage should originate from the shippers or charterers, the
agent shall have a right to demand of them the indemnity which is justly due.

ARTICLE 639. If the revocation of the voyage should arise from a just cause independent of the
will of the agent or charterers, and the vessel should not have left the port, the members of
the crew shall not have any other right than to receive the wages earned up to the day on
which the revocation took place.

ARTICLE 640. The following shall be just causes for the revocation of the voyage:

1. A declaration of war or interdiction of commerce with the power to whose territory the
vessel was bound.

2. The blockade of the port of destination or the breaking out of an epidemic after the
agreement.

3. The prohibition to receive in said port the goods which make up the cargo of the vessel.

4. The detention or embargo of the same by order of the Government, or for any other reason
independent of the will of the agent.
5. The inability of the vessel to navigate.

ARTICLE 641. If, after a voyage has been begun, any of the first three causes mentioned in the
foregoing article should occur, the sailors shall be paid at the port the captain may deem it
advisable to make for the benefit of the vessel and cargo, according to the time they may
have served thereon; but if the vessel is to continue the voyage, the captain and the crew may
mutually demand the enforcement of the contract.

In case of the occurrence of the fourth cause, the crew shall continue to be paid half wages, if
the agreement is by month but if the detention should exceed three months, the engagement
shall be rescinded and the crew shall be paid what they should have earned, according to the
contract, if the voyage had been made. And if the agreement had been made for a fixed sum
for the voyage, the contract must be complied within the terms agreed upon.

In the fifth case, the crew shall not have any other right than be entitled to recover the wages
earned; but if the disability of the vessel should have been caused by the negligence or lack of
skill of the captain, engineer, or sailing mate, they shall indemnify the crew for the loss
suffered, always reserving the criminal liability which may be proper.

ARTICLE 642. If the crew has been engaged to work on shares they shall not be entitled, by
reason of the revocation, delay, or greater extension of the voyage, to anything but the
proportionate part of the indemnity paid into the common funds of the vessel by the persons
liable for said occurrences.

ARTICLE 643. If the vessel and her freight should be totally lost, by reason of capture or wreck,
all rights of the crew to demand any wages whatsoever shall be extinguished, as well as that
of the agent for the recovery of the advances made.

If a portion of the vessel or freight should be saved, or part of either, the crew engaged on
wages, including the captain, shall retain their rights on the salvage, so far as they go, on the
remainder of the vessel as well as value of the freightage or the cargo saved; but sailors who
are engaged on shares shall not have any right whatsoever to the salvage of the hull, but only
on the portion of the freightage saved. If they should have worked to collect the remainder of
the ship-wrecked vessel, they shall be given an award in proportion to the efforts made and
to the risks encountered in order to accomplish the salvage.

ARTICLE 644. A sailor who falls sick shall not lose his right to wages during the voyage, unless
the sickness is the result of his own fault. At any rate, the costs of the attendance and cure
shall be defrayed from the common funds, in the form of a loan.

If the sickness should be caused by an injury received in the service or defense of the vessel
the sailor shall be attended and cured from the common funds, there being deducted before
anything else from the proceeds of the freight, the cost of the attendance and cure.

ARTICLE 645. If a sailor should die during the voyage his heir shall be given the wages
earned and not received, according to his engagement and the reason for his death,
namely —

If he should have died a natural death and should have been engaged on wages there shall be
paid what may have been earned up to the date of his death.
If the engagement had been made for a fixed sum for the whole voyage there shall be paid
half the amount earned if the sailor died on the voyage out, and the whole amount if he died
on the return voyage.

And if the engagement had been made on shares and the death should have occurred after
the voyage was begun, the heirs shall be paid the entire portion due the sailor; but should the
latter have died before the departure of the vessel from the port, the heirs shall not be
entitled to claim anything.

If the death should have occurred in the defense of the vessel, the sailor shall be considered
as living, and his heirs shall be paid, at the end of the voyage, the full amount of wages or the
full part of the profits due him as to the others of his grade.

The sailor shall likewise be considered as present in the event of his capture when defending
the vessel, in order to enjoy the same benefits as the rest; but should he have been captured
on account of carelessness or other accident not related to the service, he shall only receive
the wages due up to the day of his capture.

ARTICLE 646. The vessel with her engines, rigging, equipment, and freights shall be liable for
the wages earned by the crew engaged per month or for the trip, the liquidation and payment
ought to take place between one voyage and the other.

After a new voyage has been undertaken, credits such as the former shall lose their right of
preference.

ARTICLE 647. The officers and the crew of the vessel shall be exempted from all obligations
contracted, if they deem it proper, in the following cases:

1. If, before the beginning of the voyage, the captain attempts to change it, or there occurs a
naval war with the power to which the vessel was destined.

2. If a disease should break out and be officially declared epidemic in the port of destination.

3. If the vessel should change owner or captain.

ARTICLE 648. By the complement of a vessel shall be understood all the persons embarked,
from the captain to the cabin boy, necessary for the management, evolutions, and service,
and there shall, therefore, be understood as included in the complement the crew, sailing
mates, engineers, stokers, and other persons not having a specific name; but there shall not
be included the passengers nor the persons the vessel is only transporting.

SECTION IV Supercargoes

ARTICLE 649. Supercargoes shall discharge on board the vessel the administrative duties
which the agent or shippers may have assigned them; they shall keep an account and record
of their transactions in a book which shall have the same conditions and requisites as
required for the accounting book of the captain, and shall respect the latter in his duties as
chief of the vessel.
The powers and liabilities of the captain shall cease, when there is a supercargo, with regard
to that part of the administration legitimately conferred upon the latter, but shall continue in
force for all acts which are inseparable from his authority and office.

ARTICLE 650. All the provisions contained in the second section of Title III, Book II, with regard
to qualifications, manner of making contracts, and liabilities of factors shall be applicable to
supercargoes.

ARTICLE 651. Supercargoes can not, without special authorization or agreement, make any
transaction for their own account during the voyage, with the exception of the ventures
which, in accordance with the custom of the port of destination, they are permitted to do.

Neither shall they be permitted to invest in the return trip more than the profits from the
ventures, unless there is a special authorization thereto from the principals.

TITLE III Special Contracts of Maritime Commerce

SECTION I Charter Parties

1. Forms and Effects of Charter Parties

ARTICLE 652. A charter party must be drawn in duplicate and signed by the contracting
parties, and when either does not know how or can not do so, by two witnesses at their
request.

The charter party shall include, besides the conditions unrestrictedly stipulated, the following
statements:

1. The kind, name, and tonnage of the vessel.

2. Her flag and port of registry.

3. The name, surname, and domicile of the captain.

4. The name, surname, and domicile of the agent, if the latter should make the charter party.

5. The name, surname, and domicile of the charterer, and if he states that he is acting by
commission, that of the person for whose account he makes the contract.

6. The port of loading and unloading.

7. The capacity, number of tons or weight, or measure which they respectively bind
themselves to load and transport, or whether it is the total cargo.

8. The freightage to be paid, stating whether it is to be a fixed amount for the voyage or so
much per month, or for the space to be occupied, or for the weight or measure of the goods of
which the cargo consists, or in any other manner whatsoever agreed upon.
9. The amount of primage to be paid to the captain.

10. The days agreed upon for loading and unloading.

11. The lay days and extra lay days to be allowed and the rate of demurrage.

ARTICLE 653. If the freight should be received without the charter party having been signed,
the contract shall be understood as executed in accordance with what appears in the bill of
lading, which shall be the only instrument with regard to the freight to determine the rights
and obligations of the owner, of the captain, and of the charterer. t

ARTICLE 654. The charter parties executed with the intervention of a broker, who certifies to
the authenticity of the signatures of the contracting parties made in his presence, shall be full
evidence in court; and if said signatures should not agree the ones identical with the
signatures the broker must keep in his registry, if kept in accordance to law, shall be final.

The contracts shall also be admitted as evidence, even though a broker has not taken part
therein, if the contracting parties acknowledge the signatures to be the same as their own.

Should no broker have taken part in the charter party and should the signatures not have
been acknowledged, doubts shall be decided by what is provided for in the bill of lading, and
in the absence thereof by the proofs submitted by the parties.

ARTICLE 655. Charter parties executed by the captain in the absence of the agent shall be
valid and efficient, even though in executing them he should have acted in violation of the
orders and instructions of the agent or shipowner; but the latter shall have a right of action
against the captain to recover damages.

ARTICLE 656. If in the charter party the time in which the loading and unloading is to take
place is not stated, the customs of the port where these acts take place shall be observed.
After the period stipulated or the customary one has passed, and should there not be in the
freight contract an express clause fixing the indemnification for the delay, the captain shall be
entitled to demand demurrage for the usual and extra lay days which may have elapsed in
loading and unloading.

ARTICLE 657. If during the voyage the vessel should be rendered unseaworthy the captain
shall be obliged to charter another one at his expense, in good condition, to take the cargo to
its destination, for which purpose he shall be obliged to look for a vessel not only at the port
of arrival but in the other ports within a distance of 150 kilometers.

If the captain should not furnish a vessel to take the cargo to its destination, either through
indolence or malice, the freighters, after a demand of the captain to charter a vessel within an
unextendible period, may charter one and apply to the judicial authority requesting that the
charter party which may have been made be immediately approved.

The same authority shall judicially compel the captain to confirm the charter made by the
shippers for his account and under his responsibility.

If the captain, notwithstanding his efforts, should not find a vessel to charter, he shall deposit
the cargo at the disposal of the freighters, to whom he shall communicate the facts on the
first opportunity presenting itself, the charter being regulated in such cases by the distance
covered by the vessel, there being no right to any indemnification whatsoever.

ARTICLE 658. The freight shall be paid according to the conditions stipulated in the contract,
and should they not be specific, or should they be ambiguous, the following rules shall be
observed:

1. If the vessel has been chartered by months or by days, the freight shall begin to run from
the day the loading of the vessel is begun.

2. In charters made for a fixed period, the freight shall begin from that very day.

3. If the freight is charged according to weight, the payment shall be made according to gross
weight, including the containers, such as barrels or any other objects containing the cargo.

ARTICLE 659. The merchandise sold by the captain to pay for the necessary repairs to the hull,
machinery or equipment, or for unavoidable and urgent requirements, shall pay freight. t

The price of this merchandise shall be fixed according to the success of the voyage, namely:

1. If the vessel should arrive safely at the port of destination, the captain shall pay the price
which the sale of merchandise of the same kind brings at that port.

2. If the vessel should be lost, the captain shall pay the price said merchandise would have
brought in the sale.

The same rule shall be observed in the payment of the freight which shall be in full if the
vessel arrives at her destination, and in proportion to the distance covered if she should be
lost beforehand.

ARTICLE 660. Merchandise jettisoned for the common safety shall not pay freight; but its
value shall be considered as general average, and shall be computed in proportion to the
distance covered when it was jettisoned.

ARTICLE 661. Neither shall merchandise which was lost by reason of shipwreck or stranding
pay freight, nor that seized by pirates or enemies.

If the freight should have been paid in advance, it shall be returned, unless there was an
agreement to the contrary.

ARTICLE 662. If the vessel or the merchandise should be recovered, or should the goods of the
shipwreck be picked up, the freight corresponding to the distance covered by the vessel
transporting the cargo shall be paid; and should the vessel be repaired and transport said
merchandise to the port of destination, the full freight shall be paid, without prejudice to
what may be due by reason of the average.

ARTICLE 663. Merchandise which is damaged or reduced on account of its own defects or bad
quality and condition of the packing, or by reason of an accidental case, shall pay full freight,
and as was stipulated in the charter party.
ARTICLE 664. The natural increase in weight or size of the merchandise loaded on the vessel
shall accrue to the benefit of the owner, and shall pay the proper freight fixed in the contract
for the same.

ARTICLE 665. The cargo shall be specially liable for the payment of the freight expenses, and
duties arising therefrom, which must be reimbursed by the shippers, as well as for the part of
the general average which may be due, but it shall not be legal for the captain to delay
unloading on account of delay in complying with this obligation.

Should there be reasons for distrust, the judge or court, at the instance of the captain, may
order the deposit of the merchandise until he has been paid in full.

ARTICLE 666. The captain may request the sale of the cargo to the amount necessary to pay
the freight, expenses, and averages due him, reserving the right to demand the balance due
him therefor if the proceeds of the sale should not have sufficed to cover his credit.

ARTICLE 667. The goods loaded shall be liable in the first place for their freight and expenses
during twenty days, to be counted from the date of their delivery or deposit. During this
period, the sale of the same may be requested, even though there be other creditors and the
case of bankruptcy of the freighter or consignee should occur.

This right can not be made use of, however, on the goods which after being delivered, were
turned over to a third person without malice on the part of the latter and for a valuable
consideration.

ARTICLE 668. If the consignee should not be found or should refuse to receive the cargo, the
judge or court, at the instance of the captain, shall order its deposit and the sale of the
merchandise in so far as necessary to pay the freight and other expenses on the same.

The sale shall likewise take place when the goods deposited run the risk of deteriorating or by
reason of their condition or for other reasons the expenses of preservation and custody
should be disproportionate to the value thereof.

2. Rights and Obligations of Owners

ARTICLE 669. The owners or the captain shall observe in charter parties the capacity of the
vessel or that expressly designated in the registry of the same, a difference greater than 2 per
cent between that stated and her true capacity not being permissible.

If the owners or the captain should contract to carry a greater amount of cargo than the
vessel can hold, in view of her tonnage, they shall indemnify the freighters whose contracts
they do not fulfill for the losses they may have caused them by reason of their default,
according to the cases, viz:

If the vessel has been chartered by one freighter only, and there should appear to be an error
or fraud in her capacity, and the charterer should not wish to rescind the contract, when he
has a right to do so, the charter should be reduced in proportion to the cargo the vessel can
not receive, the person from whom the vessel is chartered being furthermore obliged to
indemnify the charterer for the losses he may have caused.
If, on the contrary, there should be several charter parties, and by reason of the want of space
all the cargo contracted for can not be received, and none of the charterers desires to rescind
the contract, preference shall be given to the person who has already loaded and arranged
the freight in the vessel, and the rest shall take the place corresponding to them in the order
of the dates of their contracts.

Should there be no priority, the charterers may load, if they wish, pro rata of the amounts of
weight or space they may have engaged, and the person from whom the vessel was chartered
shall be obliged to indemnify them for the loss and damage.

ARTICLE 670. If the person from whom the vessel is chartered, after receiving a part of the
freight, should not find sufficient to make up at least three-fifths of the amount which the
vessel can hold, at the price he may have fixed, he may substitute for the transportation
another vessel inspected and declared suitable for the same voyage, the expenses of transfer
being defrayed by him, as well as the increase, should there be any, in the price of the charter.
Should he not be able to make this change, the voyage shall be undertaken at the time
agreed upon; and should no time have been fixed, within fifteen days from the time of
beginning to load, should nothing to the contrary have been stipulated.

If the owner of the part of the freight already loaded should procure some more at the same
price and under similar or proportionate conditions to those accepted for the freight
received, the person from whom the vessel is chartered or the captain can not refuse to
accept the rest of the cargo; and should he do so, the freighter shall have a right to demand
that the vessel put to sea with the cargo she may have on board.

ARTICLE 671. After three-fifths of the vessel is loaded, the person from whom she is chartered
can not, without the consent of the charterers or freighters substitute the vessel designated
in the charter party by another one, under the penalty of making himself thereby liable for all
the losses and damages occurring during the voyage to the cargo of the person who did not
consent to the change.

ARTICLE 672. If the vessel has been chartered in whole, the captain can not, without the
consent of the person chartering her, accept freight from any other person; and should he do
so, said charterer may oblige him to unload it and require him to indemnify him for the losses
suffered thereby.

ARTICLE 673. The person from whom the vessel is chartered shall be liable for all the losses
caused the charterer by reason of the voluntary delay of the captain in putting to sea,
according to the rules prescribed, provided he has been requested to put to sea at the proper
time through a notary or judicially.

ARTICLE 674. If the charterer should carry to the vessel more freight than that contracted for,
the excess may be admitted in accordance with the price stipulated in the contract, if it can
be well stowed without injuring the other freighters, but if in order to stow said freight it
should be necessary to stow it in such manner as to throw the vessel out of trim the captain
must refuse it or unload it at the expense of its owner.
The captain may likewise, before leaving the port, unload the merchandise placed on board
clandestinely, or transport it, if he can do so and keep the vessel in trim, demanding by way of
freightage the highest price which may have been stipulated for said voyage.

ARTICLE 675. If the vessel has been chartered to receive the cargo in another port, the captain
shall appear before the consignee designated in the charter party, and, should the latter not
deliver the cargo to him, he shall inform the charterer and await his instructions, and in the
meantime the lay days agreed upon shall begin to run, or those allowed by custom in the
port, unless there is a special agreement to the contrary.

Should the captain not receive an answer within the time necessary therefor, he shall make
efforts to find freight; and should he not find any after the lay days and extra lay days have
elapsed, he shall make a protest and return to the port where the charter was made.

The charterer shall pay the freightage in full, discounting that which may have been earned
on the merchandise which may have been carried on the voyage out or on the return trip, if
carried for the account of third persons.

The same shall be done if a vessel, having been chartered for the round trip, should not be
given any cargo for her return.

ARTICLE 676. The captain shall lose the freightage and shall indemnify the charterers if the
latter should prove, even against the certificate of inspection, should one have taken place at
the port of departure, that the vessel was not in a condition to navigate at the time of
receiving the cargo.

ARTICLE 677. The charter party shall be enforced if the captain should not have any
instructions from the charterer, and a declaration of war or a blockade should take place
during the voyage.

In such case the captain shall be obliged to make the nearest safe and neutral port, and
request and await orders from the freighter; and the expenses incurred and salaries earned
during the detention shall be paid as general average.

If, by orders of the freighter, the cargo should be discharged at the port of arrival, the freight
for the voyage out shall be paid in full.

ARTICLE 678. If the time necessary, in the opinion of the judge or court, in which to receive
orders from the freighters should have elapsed without the captain having received any
instructions, the cargo shall be deposited, and it shall be liable for the payment of the freight
and expenses incurred by reason of the delay which shall be paid from the proceeds of the
part first sold.

3. Obligations of Charterers

ARTICLE 679. The charterer of an entire vessel may subcharter the whole or part thereof for
the amounts he may consider most convenient, without the captain being allowed to refuse
to receive on board the freight delivered by the second charterers, provided the conditions of
the first charter are not changed, and that the person from whom the vessel is chartered be
paid the full price agreed upon even though the full cargo is not embarked, with the limitation
established in the next article.

ARTICLE 680. A charterer who does not make up the full cargo he bound himself to ship shall
pay the freightage of the amount he fails to ship, if the captain did not take other freight to
make up the cargo of the vessel, in which case he shall pay the first charterer the difference
should there be any.

ARTICLE 681. If the charterer should ship goods different from those indicated at the time of
executing the charter party, without the knowledge of the person from whom the vessel was
chartered or of the captain, and should thereby give rise to losses, by reason of confiscation,
embargo, detention, or other causes, to the person from whom the vessel was chartered or to
the shippers, the person giving rise thereto shall be liable with the value of his shipment and
furthermore with his property, for the full indemnity to all those injured through his fault.

ARTICLE 682. If the merchandise shipped should have been for the purpose of illicit
commerce, and was taken on board with the knowledge of the person from whom the vessel
was chartered or of the captain, the latter, jointly with the owner of the same, shall be liable
for all the losses which may be caused the other shippers, and even though it may have been
agreed, they can not demand any indemnity whatsoever of the charterer for the damage
caused the vessel.

ARTICLE 683. In case of making a port to repair the hull, machinery, or equipment of the
vessel, the freighters must wait until the vessel is repaired, being permitted to unload her at
their own expense should they deem it advisable.

If, for the benefit of the cargo subject to deterioration, the freighters or the court, or the
consul, or the competent authority in a foreign land should order the merchandise to be
unloaded, the expenses of loading and unloading shall be for the account of the former.

ARTICLE 684. If the charterer, without the occurrence of any of the cases of force
majeure mentioned in the foregoing article, should wish to unload his merchandise before
arriving at the port of destination, he shall pay the full freight, the expenses of the stop made
at his request, and the losses and damages caused the other freighters, should there be any.

ARTICLE 685. In charters for transportation of general freight any of the freighters may unload
the merchandise before the beginning of the voyage, by paying one-half the freight, the
expense of stowing and restowing the cargo, and any other damage which may be caused the
other shippers.

ARTICLE 686. After the vessel has been unloaded and the cargo placed at the disposal of the
consignee, the latter must immediately pay the captain the freight due and the other
expenses to which he may be liable for said cargo.

The primage must be paid in the same proportion and at the same time as the freight, all the
changes and modifications to which the latter should be subject also governing the former.

ARTICLE 687. The charters and freighters can not abandon merchandise damaged on account
of the inherent vice of the goods or by reason of an accidental case, for the payment of the
freight and other expenses.
The abandonment shall be proper, however, if the cargo should consist of liquids and should
they have leaked out, there not remaining in the containers more than one-quarter of their
contents.

4. Total or Partial Rescissions of Charter Parties

ARTICLE 688. A charter party may be annulled at the request of the charterer:

1. If before loading the vessel he should abandon the charter, paying half of the freightage
agreed upon.

2. If the capacity of the vessel should not agree with that stated in the certificate of the
tonnage, or if there is an error in the statement of the flag under which she sails.

3. If the vessel should not be placed at the disposal of the charterer within the period and in
the manner agreed upon.

4. If, after the vessel has put to sea, she should return to the port of departure, on account of
risk of pirates, enemies, or bad weather, and the freighters should agree to unload her.

In the second and third cases the person from whom the vessel was chartered shall indemnify
the charterer for the losses he may suffer.

In the fourth case the person from whom the vessel was chartered shall have a right to the
freightage in full for the voyage out.

If the charter should have been made by the months, the charterers shall pay the full
freightage for one month, if the voyage were to a port in the same waters, and two months, if
the voyage were to a port in different waters.

From one port to another of the Peninsula and adjacent islands, the freightage for one month
only shall be paid.

5. If a vessel should make a port during the voyage in order to make urgent repairs and the
freighters should prefer to dispose of the merchandise.

When the delay does not exceed thirty days, the freighters shall pay the full freight for the
voyage out.

Should the delay exceed thirty days, they shall only pay the freight in proportion to the
distance covered by the vessel.

ARTICLE 689. At the request of the person from whom the vessel is chartered the charter party
may be rescinded:

1. If the charterer at the termination of the extra lay days does not place the cargo alongside
the vessel.

In such case the charterer must pay half the freight stipulated besides the demurrage for the
lay days and extra lay days elapsed.
2. If the person from whom the vessel was chartered should sell her before the charterer has
begun to load her and the purchaser should load her for his own account.

In such case the vendor shall indemnify the charterer for the losses he may suffer.

If the new owner of the vessel should not load her for his own account the charter party shall
be respected, and the vendor shall indemnify the purchaser if the former did not inform him
of the charter pending at the time of making the sale.

ARTICLE 690. The charter party shall be rescinded and all action arising therefrom shall be
extinguished if, before the vessel puts to sea from the port of departure, any of the following
cases should occur:

1. A declaration of war or interdiction of commerce with the power to whose ports the vessel
was going to sail.

2. A condition of blockade of the port of destination of said vessel, or the breaking out of an
epidemic after the contract was executed.

3. The prohibition to receive the merchandise of the vessel at the said port.

4. An indefinite detention, by reason of an embargo of the vessel by order of the government

or for any other reason independent of the will of the agent.

5. The impossibility of the vessel to navigate, without fault of the captain or agent.

The unloading shall be made for the account of the charterer.

ARTICLE 691. If the vessel can not put to sea on account of the closing of the port of
departure, or any other temporary cause, the charter shall be in force without any of the
contracting parties having a right to claim damages.

The subsistence and wages of the crew shall be considered as general average.

During the interruption the charterer may, at the proper time and for his own account, unload
and load the merchandise, paying demurrage if the reloading should continue after the
reason for the detention has ceased.

ARTICLE 692. A charter party shall be partially rescinded, unless there is an agreement to the
contrary, and the captain shall only be entitled to the freight for the voyage out, if, by reason
of a declaration of war, closing of ports, or interdiction of commercial relations during the
voyage, the vessel should make the port designated for such a case in the instructions of the
charterer.

5. Passengers on Sea Voyages

ARTICLE 693. Should the passage price not have been agreed upon, the judge or court shall
summarily fix it, after a statement of experts.
ARTICLE 694. Should the passenger not arrive on board at the time fixed, or should leave the
vessel without permission from the captain, when the latter is ready to leave the port, the
captain may continue the voyage and demand the full passage price.

ARTICLE 695. The right to passage, if issued to a specified person, can not be transferred
without the consent of the captain or of the consignee.

ARTICLE 696. If before beginning the voyage the passenger should die, his heirs shall only be
obliged to pay half of the passage agreed upon.

If there should be understood in the price stipulated the expenses of subsistence, the judge,
or court, hearing experts if he considers it necessary, shall fix the amount to be paid the
vessel.

Should another passenger be received in the place of the deceased, nothing shall be paid by
said heirs.

ARTICLE 697. If before beginning the voyage it should be suspended through the sole fault of
the captain or agent, the passengers shall be entitled to have their passage refunded and to
recover for losses and damages; but if the suspension was due to an accidental cause, or
to force majeure, or to any other cause beyond the control of the captain or agent, the
passengers shall only be entitled to the return of the passage money.

ARTICLE 698. In case a voyage already begun should be interrupted the passengers shall be
obliged only to pay the passage in proportion to the distance covered, and shall not be
entitled to recover for losses and damages if the interruption is due to an accidental cause or
to force majeure, but have a right to indemnity if the interruption should have been caused by
the captain exclusively. If the interruption should be by reason of the disability of the vessel,
and the passenger should agree to await her repair, he can not be required to pay any
increased price of passage, but his living expenses during the delay shall be for his own
account.

In case the departure of the vessel is delayed the passengers have a right to remain on board
and to be furnished with food for the account of the vessel, unless the delay is due to an
accidental cause or to  force majeure. If the delay should exceed ten days, the passengers who
request it shall be entitled to the return of the passage; and if it were due exclusively to the
captain or agent they may furthermore demand indemnity for losses and damages.

A vessel which is exclusively destined to the transportation of passengers must take them
directly to the port or ports of destination, no matter what the number of passengers may be,
making all the stops indicated in her itinerary.

ARTICLE 699. After the contract has been rescinded, before or after the commencement of the
voyage, the captain shall have a right to claim payment for what he may have furnished the
passengers.

ARTICLE 700. In all that relates to the preservation of order and police on board the vessel the
passengers shall conform to the orders given by the captain, without any distinction
whatsoever.
ARTICLE 701. The convenience or the interest of the passengers shall not obligate nor
empower the captain to stand in shore or enter places which may take the vessel out of her
course, nor to remain in the ports he must or is under the necessity of touching for a period
longer than that required for the business of the navigation.

ARTICLE 702. In the absence of an agreement to the contrary, it shall be understood that the
maintenance of the passengers during the voyage is included in the price of the passage; but
should said maintenance be for the account of the latter, the captain shall be under the
obligation, in case of necessity, to furnish them the victuals at a reasonable price necessary
for their maintenance.

ARTICLE 703. A passenger shall be looked upon as a shipper in so far as the goods he carries
on board are concerned, and the captain shall not be liable for what said passenger may
preserve under his immediate and special custody unless the damage arises from an act of
the captain or of the crew.

ARTICLE 704. The captain, in order to collect the price of the passage and expenses of
maintenance, may retain the goods belonging to the passenger, and in case of the sale of the
same he shall be given preference over the other creditors, acting in the same way as in the
collection of freight.

ARTICLE 705. In case of the death of a passenger during the voyage the captain is authorized,
with regard to the body, to take the steps required by the circumstances, and shall carefully
take care of the papers and goods there may be on board belonging to the passenger,
observing the provisions of Case No. 10 of Article 612 with regard to members of the crew.

6. Bills of Lading

ARTICLE 706. The captain and the freighter of the vessel are obliged to draft the bill of lading,
in which there shall be stated:

1. The name, registry, and tonnage of the vessel.

2. The name of the captain and his domicile.

3. The port of loading and that of unloading.

4. The name of the shipper.

5. The name of the consignee, if the bill of lading is issued to order.

6. The quantity, quality, number of packages, and marks of the merchandise.

7. The freight and the primage stipulated.

The bill of lading may be issued to bearer, to order, or in the name of a specific person, and
must be signed within twenty-four hours after the cargo has been received on board, the
freighter being able to request the unloading thereof at the expense of the captain should he
not sign it, and in every case indemnity for the losses and damages suffered thereby.
ARTICLE 707. Four true copies of the original bill of lading shall be made, all of which shall be
signed by the captain and by the freighter. Of these copies the freighter shall keep one and
send another to the consignee; the captain shall take two, one for himself and another for the
agent.

There may, furthermore, be made as many copies of the bill of lading as may be considered
necessary by the persons interested; but when they are issued to order or to the bearer there
shall be stated in all the copies, be they either of the first four or of the subsequent ones, the
destination of each one, stating whether it is for the agent, for the captain, for the freighter, or
for the consignee. If the copy sent to the latter should be duplicated there must be stated in
said duplicate this fact, and that it is not valid except in case of the loss of the first one.

ARTICLE 708. The bills of lading issued to the bearer sent to the consignee shall be
transferable by the actual delivery of the instrument; and by virtue of an indorsement, those
issued to order.

In either case, the person to whom the bill of lading is transferred shall acquire all the rights
and actions of the assignor or indorser with regard to the merchandise mentioned in the
same.

ARTICLE 709. A bill of lading drawn up in accordance with the provisions of this title shall be
proof as between all those interested in the cargo and between the latter and the
underwriters, proof to the contrary being reserved by the latter.

ARTICLE 710. Should the bills of lading not agree, and there should not be observed any
correction or erasure in any of them, those possessed by the freighter or consignee signed by
the captain shall be proof against the captain or agent in favor of the consignee or freighter;
and those possessed by the captain or agent signed by the freighter shall be proof against the
freighter or consignee in favor of the captain or agent.

ARTICLE 711. The legitimate holder of a bill of lading who does not present it to the captain of
the vessel before her unloading, obliging the latter thereby to unload it and place it in
deposit, shall be liable for the cost of warehousing and other expenses arising therefrom.

ARTICLE 712. The captain can not himself change the destination of merchandise. In
admitting this change at the instance of the freighter, he must first take up the bills of lading
he may have issued, under the penalty of being liable for the cargo to the legitimate holder of
the same.

ARTICLE 713. If before delivering the cargo a new bill of lading should be demanded of the
captain, it being alleged that the previous ones are not presented on account of their loss or
for any other sufficient cause, he shall be obliged to issue it, provided security for the value of
the cargo is given to his satisfaction; but without changing the consignment and stating
therein the circumstances prescribed in the last paragraph of Article 707, when the bills of
lading referred to therein are in question, under the penalty otherwise to be liable for said
cargo if not properly delivered through his fault.

ARTICLE 714. If before the vessel puts to sea the captain should die or should discontinue in
his position through any accident, the freighters shall have a right to demand of the new
captain the ratification of the first bills of lading, and the latter must do so, provided all the
copies previously issued be presented or returned to him, and it should appear from an
examination of the cargo that they are correct.

The expenses arising from the examination of the cargo shall be defrayed by the agent,
without prejudice to the right of action of the latter against the first captain, if he ceased to be
such through his own fault. Should said examination not be made, it shall be understood that
the new captain accepts the cargo as it appears from the bills of lading issued.

ARTICLE 715. Bills of lading will give rise to a most summary action or to judicial compulsion,
according to the case, for the delivery of the cargo and the payment of the freightage and
proper expenses.

ARTICLE 716. If several persons should present bills of lading issued to bearer or to order,
indorsed in their favor, demanding the same merchandise, the captain shall prefer in
delivering the same, the person presenting the copy first issued, with the exception of the
case when the latter one was issued on account of the loss of the first one, and if they are held
by different persons.

In such case, as well as when only second or subsequent copies issued without this proof are
presented, the captain shall apply to the judge or court, so that he may order the deposit of
the merchandise, and that through him it may be delivered to the proper person.

ARTICLE 717. The delivery of the bill of lading shall effect the cancellation of all the
provisional receipts of prior date given by the captain or his subalterns for partial deliveries of
the cargo which may have been made.

ARTICLE 718. After the cargo has been delivered, the bills of lading which the captain signed
shall be returned to him, or at least the copy by reason of which the delivery is made, with the
receipt for the merchandise mentioned therein.

The delay on the part of the consignee shall make him liable for the damages which may be
caused the captain thereby.

SECTION II Loans on Bottomry and Respondentia

ARTICLE 719. A loan on bottomry or respondentia shall be considered that which the

repayment of the sum loaned and the premium stipulated, under any condition whatsoever,
depends on the safe arrival in port of the goods on which it is made, or of their value in case of
accident.

ARTICLE 720. Loans on bottomry or respondentia may be executed:

1. By means of a public instrument.

2. By means of a bond signed by the contracting parties and the broker who took part therein.
t

3. By means of a private instrument.

Under whichever of these forms the contract is executed, it shall be entered in the certificate
of the registry of the vessel and shall be recorded in the commercial registry, without which
requisites the credits originating from the same shall not have, with regard to other credits,
the preference which, according to their nature, they should have, although the obligation
shall be valid between the contracting parties.

The contracts made during a voyage shall be governed by the provisions of Articles 583 and
611, and shall be effective with regard to third persons from the date of their execution, if
they should be recorded in the commercial registry of the port of registry of the vessel before
eight days have elapsed from the date of her arrival. If said eight days should elapse without
the record having been made in the commercial registry, the contracts made during the
voyage of a vessel shall not have any effect with regard to third persons, except from the day
and date of their entry.

In order that the bonds of the contracts celebrated in accordance with No. 2 may have legal
force, they must conform to the registry of the broker who took part therein. In those
celebrated in accordance with No. 3 the acknowledgment of the signature must precede.

Contracts which are not reduced to writing shall not be the basis for a judicial action.

ARTICLE 721. In a bottomry or respondentia bond there must be stated:

1. The kind, name, and registry of the vessel.

2. The name, surname, and domicile of the captain.

3. The names, surnames, and domicile of the person giving and of the person receiving the
loan.

4. The amount of the loan and the premium stipulated.

5. The time for repayment.

6. The goods pledged to secure repayment.

7. The voyage for which the risk is run.

ARTICLE 722. The bonds may be issued to order, in which case they shall be transferable by
indorsement, and the assignee shall acquire all the rights and run all the risks corresponding
to the indorser.

ARTICLE 723. Loans may be made in goods and in merchandise, their value being fixed in
order to determine the amount of the loan.

ARTICLE 724. The loans may be constituted jointly or separately:

1. On the hull of the vessel.

2. On the rigging.

3. On the equipment, provisions, and fuel.

4. On the engine, if the vessel is a steamer.

5. On the cargo.

If the loan is constituted on the hull of the vessel, there shall be understood as also subject to
the liability of the loan, the rigging, equipment and other goods, provisions, fuel, steam
engines, and the freight earned during the voyage subject to the loan.

If the loan is made on the cargo, all that constitutes the same shall be subject to the
repayment; and if on a particular object of the vessel or of the cargo, the object exclusively
and specifically mentioned only shall be liable.

ARTICLE 725. No loans can be made on the salaries of the crew, nor on the profits which it is
expected to earn.

ARTICLE 726. If the lender should prove that he loaned a larger amount than the value of the
article liable for the bottomry loan, by reason of fraudulent measures employed by the
borrower the loan shall only be valid for the amount at which said object is appraised by
experts.

The surplus principal shall be returned with legal interest for the whole period of the duration
of the disbursement.

ARTICLE 727. If the full amount of the loan contracted to load the vessel should not be made
use of for the cargo, the surplus shall be returned before clearing.

The same procedure shall be observed with regard to the goods taken as a loan if they could
not all have been loaded.

ARTICLE 728. The loan which the captain takes at the point of residence of the owners of the
vessel shall only affect that part of the latter which belongs to the captain, if the other owners
or their agents should not have given their express authorization thereto or should not have
taken part in the transaction.

If one or more of the owners should be requested to furnish the amount necessary to repair or
provision the vessel, and should not do so within twenty-four hours, the interest which the
parties in default may have in the vessel shall be liable for the loan in the proper proportion.

Outside of the residence of the owners the captain may contract loans in accordance with the
provisions of Articles 583 and 611.

ARTICLE 729. Should the goods on which money is taken not be subjected to any risk, the
contract shall be considered an ordinary loan, the borrower being under the obligation to
return the principal and interest at the legal rate, if the interest stipulated should not have
been lower.

ARTICLE 730. Loans made during the voyage shall have preference over those made before
the clearing of the vessel, and they shall be graduated by the inverse order to that of their
dates.

The loans for the last voyage shall have preference over prior ones.
Should several loans have been made at a port made under stress and for the same purpose,
all of them shall be paid pro rata.

ARTICLE 731. The actions which may be brought by the lender shall be extinguished by the
absolute loss of the goods on which the loan was made, if said loss arose from an accident of
the sea at the time and during the voyage designated in the contract, and should it be proven
that the cargo was on board; but this shall not take place if the loss were caused by the
inherent defect of the thing or through the fault or malice of the borrower, or through
barratry on the part of the captain, or if it were caused by damages suffered by the vessel as a
consequence of being engaged in contraband, or if it arose through loading the merchandise
on a vessel other than that designated in the contract, unless this change should have been
made by reason of  force majeure.

The proof of the loss is incumbent upon the person who received the loan, as well as the
proof of the existence in the vessel of the goods declared to the lender as the object thereof.

ARTICLE 732. Lenders on bottomry or respondentia shall suffer in proportion to their

respective interest, the general average which may take place in the goods on which the loan
was made.

In particular averages, in the absence of an express agreement between the contracting

parties, the lender on bottomry or respondentia shall also contribute in proportion to his
respective interest, should it not belong to the kind of risks excepted in the foregoing article.

ARTICLE 733. Should it not have been stated in the contract for what period the lender runs
the risk, the said risk shall last with regard to the vessel, engines, rigging, and equipment from
the moment said vessel puts to sea until she drops anchor in the port of destination, and with
regard to the merchandise, from the time it is loaded on the shore or wharf of the port of
shipment until unloaded in the port of consignment.

ARTICLE 734. In case of shipwreck the amount liable for the return of the loan shall be
reduced to the proceeds of the goods saved, after the costs of the salvage have been
deducted.

If the loan were on the vessel or any of her parts, the freightage earned during the voyage for
which said loan was contracted shall also be liable for its payment, as far as it is available.

ARTICLE 735. If the same vessel or cargo should be the object of a loan on bottomry
or respondentia and marine insurance, the value of what may be saved shall be divided, in
case of shipwreck, between the lender and the underwriter, in proportion to the legitimate
interest of each one, taking into consideration, for this purpose only, the principal with
relation to the loan, and without prejudice to the right of preference of other creditors in
accordance with Article 580.

ARTICLE 736. If there should be delay in the repayment of the principal or premiums of the
loan, the former only shall bear legal interest.
 TITLE IV Risks, Damages and Accidents of Maritime Commerce

SECTION I Averages

ARTICLE 806. For the purposes of this Code the following shall be considered averages:

1. All extraordinary or accidental expenses which may be incurred during the navigation for
the preservation of the vessel or cargo, or both.

2. All damages or deterioration the vessel may suffer from the time she puts to sea from the
port of departure until she casts anchor in the port of destination, and those suffered by the
merchandise from the time it is loaded in the port of shipment until it is unloaded in the port
of consignment.

ARTICLE 807. The petty and ordinary expenses of navigation, such as pilotage of coasts and
ports, lighterage and towage, anchorage dues, inspection, health, quarantine, lazaretto, and
other so-called port expenses, costs of barges, and unloading, until the merchandise is placed
on the wharf, and any other expenses common to navigation shall be considered ordinary
expenses to be defrayed by the shipowner, unless there is a special agreement to the
contrary.

ARTICLE 808. Averages shall be:

1. Simple or particular.

2. General or gross.

ARTICLE 809. Simple or particular averages shall be, as a general rule, all the expenses and
damages caused to the vessel or to her cargo which have not redounded to the benefit and
common profit of all the persons interested in the vessel and her cargo, and especially the
following:

1. The damages suffered by the cargo from the time of its embarkation until it is unloaded,
either on account of the nature of the goods or by reason of an accident at sea or force
majeure, and the expenses incurred to avoid and repair the same.

2. The damages suffered by the vessel in her hull, rigging, arms, and equipment, for the same
causes and reasons, from the time she puts to sea from the port of departure until she
anchored in the port of destination.

3. The damages suffered by the merchandise loaded on deck, except in coastwise navigation,
if the marine ordinances allow it.

4. The wages and victuals of the crew when the vessel should be detained or embargoed by a
legitimate order or  force majeure, if the charter should have been for a fixed sum for the
voyage.

5. The necessary expenses on arrival at a port, in order to make repairs or secure provisions.
6. The lowest value of the goods sold by the captain in arrivals under stress for the payment of
provisions and in order to save the crew, or to cover any other requirement of the vessel
against which the proper amount shall be charged.

7. The victuals and wages of the crew during the time the vessel is in quarantine.

8. The damage suffered by the vessel or cargo by reason of an impact or collision with
another, if it were accidental and unavoidable. If the accident should occur through the fault
or negligence of the captain, the latter shall be liable for all the damage caused.

9. Any damage suffered by the cargo through the faults, negligence, or barratry of the captain
or of the crew, without prejudice to the right of the owner to recover the corresponding
indemnity from the captain, the vessel, and the freight.

ARTICLE 810. The owner of the goods which gave rise to the expense or suffered the damage
shall bear the simple or particular averages.

ARTICLE 811. General or gross averages shall be, as a general rule, all the damages and
expenses which are deliberately caused in order to save the vessel, her cargo, or both at the
same time, from a real and known risk, and particularly the following:

1. The goods or cash invested in the redemption of the vessel or cargo captured by enemies,
privateers, or pirates, and the provisions, wages, and expenses of the vessel detained during
the time the arrangement or redemption is taking place.

2. The goods jettisoned to lighten the vessel, whether they belong to the vessel, to the cargo,
or to the crew, and the damage suffered through said act by the goods kept.

3. The cables and masts which are cut or rendered useless, the anchors and the chains which
are abandoned in order to save the cargo, the vessel, or both.

4. The expenses of removing or transferring a portion of the cargo in order to lighten the
vessel and place her in condition to enter a port or roadstead, and the damage resulting
therefrom to the goods removed or transferred.

5. The damage suffered by the goods of the cargo through the opening made in the vessel in
order to drain her and prevent her sinking.

6. The expenses caused through floating a vessel intentionally stranded for the purpose of
saving her.

7. The damage caused to the vessel which it is necessary to break open, scuttle, or smash in
order to save the cargo.

8. The expenses of curing and maintaining the members of the crew who may have been
wounded or crippled in defending or saving the vessel.

9. The wages of any member of the crew detained as hostage by enemies, privateers, or
pirates, and the necessary expenses which he may incur in his imprisonment, until he is
returned to the vessel or to his domicile, should he prefer it.
10. The wages and victuals of the crew of a vessel chartered by the month during the time it
should be embargoed or detained by  force majeure or by order of the Government, or in order
to repair the damage caused for the common good.

11. The loss suffered in the value of the goods sold at arrivals under stress in order to repair
the vessel because of gross average.

12. The expenses of the liquidation of the average.

ARTICLE 812. In order to satisfy the amount of the gross or general averages, all the persons
having an interest in the vessel and cargo therein at the time of the occurrence of the average
shall contribute.

ARTICLE 813. In order to incur the expenses and cause the damages corresponding to gross
average, a previous resolution of the captain, adopted after deliberation with the sailing mate
and other officers of the vessel, and with a hearing of the persons interested in the cargo who
may be present, shall be required.

If the latter shall object, and the captain and officers, or a majority, or the captain, if opposed
to the majority, should consider certain measures necessary, they may be executed under his
liability, without prejudice to the freighters exercising their rights against the captain before
the judge or court of competent jurisdiction, if they can prove that he acted with malice, lack
of skill, or negligence.

If the persons interested in the cargo, being on the vessel, should not be heard, they shall not
contribute to the gross average, which contribution shall be paid by the captain, unless the
urgency of the case should be such that the time necessary for previous deliberation was
lacking.

ARTICLE 814. The resolution adopted to cause the damages which constitute a general
average must necessarily be entered in the log book, stating the motives and reasons
therefor, the votes against it, and the reasons for the disagreement should there be any, and
the irresistible and urgent causes which moved the captain if he acted of his own accord.

In the first case the minutes shall be signed by all the persons present who could do so before
taking action if possible, and if not at the first opportunity; in the second case by the captain
and by the officers of the vessel.

In the minutes and after the resolution there shall be stated in detail all the goods cast away,
and mention shall be made of the injuries caused to those kept on board. The captain shall be
obliged to deliver one copy of these minutes to the maritime judicial authority of the first port
he may make within twenty-four hours after his arrival, and to ratify it immediately by an
oath.

ARTICLE 815. The captain shall supervise the jettison, and shall order the goods cast
overboard in the following order:

1. Those which are on deck, beginning with those which embarrass the handling of the vessel
or damage her, preferring, if possible, the heaviest ones and those of least utility and value.
2. Those in the hold, always beginning with those of the greatest weight and smallest value,
to the amount and number absolutely indispensable.

ARTICLE 816. In order that the goods jettisoned may be included in the gross average and the
owners thereof be entitled to indemnity, it shall be necessary in so far as the cargo is
concerned that their existence on board be proven by means of the bill of lading; and with
regard to those belonging to the vessel, by means of the inventory made up before the
departure, in accordance with the first paragraph of Article 612.

ARTICLE 817. If in lightening a vessel on account of a storm, in order to facilitate her entry into
a port or roadstead, part of her cargo should be transferred to lighters or barges and be lost,
the owner of said part shall be entitled to indemnity, as if the loss has originated from a gross
average, the amount thereof being distributed between the entire vessel and cargo which
caused the same.

If, on the contrary, the merchandise transferred should be saved and the vessel should be
lost, no liability can be demanded of the salvage.

ARTICLE 818. If, as a necessary measure to extinguish a fire in a port; roadstead; creek, or bay,
it should be decided to sink any vessel, this loss shall be considered gross average, to which
the vessels saved shall contribute.

SECTION II Arrivals Under Stress

ARTICLE 819. If the captain during the navigation should believe that the vessel can not
continue the voyage to the port of destination on account of the lack of provisions, well
founded fear of seizure, privateers or pirates, or by reason of any accident of the sea disabling
her to navigate, he shall assemble the officers and shall call the persons interested in the
cargo who may be present, and who may attend the meeting without the right to vote; and if,
after examining the circumstances of the case, the reasons should be considered well
founded, it shall be decided to make the nearest and most convenient port drafting and
entering in the log book the proper minutes, which shall be signed by all.

The captain shall have the deciding vote and the persons interested in the cargo may make
the objections and protests they may deem proper, which shall be entered in the minutes in
order that they may make use thereof in the manner they may consider advisable.

ARTICLE 820. The arrival under stress shall not be considered legal in the following cases:

1. If the lack of provisions should arise from the failure to take the necessary provisions for
the voyage, according to usage and custom, or if they should have been rendered useless or
lost through bad stowage or negligence in their care.

2. If the risk of enemies, privateers, or pirates should not have been well known, manifest, and
based on positive and justifiable facts.

3. If the injury to the vessel should have been caused by reason of her not being repaired,
rigged, equipped, and arranged in a convenient manner for the voyage, or by reason of some
erroneous order of the captain.
4. Whenever malice, negligence, want of foresight, or lack of skill on the part of the captain is
the reason for the act causing the damage.

ARTICLE 821. The expenses caused by the arrival under stress shall always be for the account
of the shipowner or agent, but the latter shall not be liable for the damage which may be
caused the shippers by reason of the arrival under stress, provided the latter is legitimate.

Otherwise, the shipowner or agent and the captain shall be jointly liable.

ARTICLE 822. If in order to make repairs to the vessel or because there should be danger of
the cargo suffering damage it should be necessary to unload, the captain must request
authorization of the judge or court of competent jurisdiction to lighten the vessel, and do so
with the knowledge of the person interested or representative of the cargo, should there be
one.

In a foreign port, it shall be the duty of the Spanish * consul, where there is one, to give the
authorization.

In the first case, the expenses shall be defrayed by the ship agent or owner, and in the second,
they shall be for the account of the owners of the merchandise, for whose benefit the act took
place.

If the unloading should take place for both reasons, the expenses shall be defrayed in
proportion to the value of the vessel and that of the cargo.

ARTICLE 823. The care and preservation of the cargo which has been unloaded shall be in
charge of the captain, who shall be responsible for the same, except in cases of force majeure.

ARTICLE 824. If the entire cargo or part thereof should appear to be damaged, or there should
be imminent danger of its being damaged, the captain may request of the judge or court of
competent jurisdiction or the consul, in a proper case, the sale of all or of part of the former,
and the person taking cognizance of the matter shall authorize it after an examination and
declaration of experts, advertisements, and other formalities required by the case and an
entry in the book, in accordance with the provisions of Article 624.

The captain shall, in a proper case, justify the legality of the procedure, under the penalty of
answering to the shipper for the price the merchandise would have brought if it should have
arrived at the port of its destination in good condition.

ARTICLE 825. The captain shall answer for the damages caused by his delay, if the reason for
the arrival under stress having ceased, he should not continue the voyage.

If the reason for said arrival should have been the fear of enemies, privateers, or pirates,
before sailing, a discussion and resolution of a meeting of the officers of the vessel and
persons interested in the cargo who may be present shall take place, in accordance with the
provisions contained in Article 819.

SECTION III Collisions

ARTICLE 826. If a vessel should collide with another through the fault, negligence, or lack of
skill of the captain, sailing mate, or any other member of the complement, the owner of the
vessel at fault shall indemnify the losses and damages suffered, after an expert appraisal.

ARTICLE 827. If both vessels may be blamed for the collision, each one shall be liable for his
own damages, and both shall be jointly responsible for the losses and damages suffered by
their cargoes.

ARTICLE 828. The provisions of the foregoing article are applicable to the case in which it can
not be decided which of the two vessels was the cause of the collision.

ARTICLE 829. In the cases above mentioned the civil action of the owner against the person
liable for the damage is reserved, as well as the criminal liabilities which may be proper.

ARTICLE 830. If a vessel should collide with another by reason of an accident or through force
majeure, each vessel and her cargo shall be liable for their own damage.

ARTICLE 831. If a vessel should be forced to collide with another one by a third vessel, the
owner of the third vessel shall indemnify for the losses and damages caused, the captain
thereof being civilly liable to said owner.

ARTICLE 832. If, by reason of a storm or other cause of  force majeure, a vessel which is
properly anchored and moored should collide with those in her immediate vicinity, causing
them damage, the injury occasioned shall be looked upon as particular average to the vessel
run into.

ARTICLE 833. A vessel shall be presumed as lost thru a collision which, upon being run into,
sinks immediately, and also any vessel which is obliged to make a port to repair the damages
caused by the collision should be lost during the voyage, or should be obliged to be stranded
in order to be saved.

ARTICLE 834. If the vessels colliding should have pilots on board discharging their duties at
the time of the collision, their presence shall not exempt the captains from the liabilities they
incur; but the latter shall have the right to be indemnified by the pilots without prejudice to
the criminal liability which the latter may incur.

ARTICLE 835. The action for the recovery of losses and damages arising from collisions can
not be admitted if a protest or declaration is not presented within twenty-four hours to the
competent authority of the point where the collision took place, or that of the first port of
arrival of the vessel, if in Spain, * and to the consul of Spain * if it should have occurred in a
foreign country.

ARTICLE 836. In so far as the damages caused to persons or to the cargo are concerned, the
absence of a protest can not prejudice the persons interested who were not on board or were
not in a condition to make known their wishes.

ARTICLE 837. The civil liability contracted by the shipowners in the cases prescribed in this
section, shall be understood as limited to the value of the vessel with all her appurtenances
and all the freight earned during the voyage.
ARTICLE 838. When the value of the vessel and her appurtenances should not be sufficient to
cover all the liabilities, the indemnity due by reason of the death or injury of persons shall
have preference.

ARTICLE 839. If the collision should occur between Spanish * vessels in foreign waters, or if it
should take place in open waters, and the vessels should make a foreign port, the
Spanish * consul in said port shall hold a summary investigation of the accident, forwarding
the proceedings to the captain-general of the nearest department * for continuation and
conclusion.

SECTION IV Shipwrecks

ARTICLE 840. The losses and deteriorations suffered by a vessel and her cargo by reason of
shipwreck or stranding shall be individually for the account of the owners, the part of the
wreck which may be saved belonging to them in the same proportion.

ARTICLE 841. If the wreck or stranding should arise through the malice, negligence, or lack of
skill of the captain, or because the vessel put to sea insufficiently repaired and prepared, the
owner or the freighters may demand indemnity of the captain for the damages caused to the
vessel or cargo by the accident, in accordance with the provisions contained in Articles 610,
612, 614, and 621.

ARTICLE 842. The goods saved from the wreck shall be specially liable for the payment of the
expenses of the respective salvage, and the amount thereof must be paid by the owners of
the former before they are delivered to them, and with preference to any other obligation, if
the merchandise should be sold.

ARTICLE 843. If several vessels navigate under convoy, and any of them should be wrecked,
the cargo saved shall be distributed among the rest in the proportion to the amount each one
can receive.

If any captain should refuse, without sufficient cause, to receive what may correspond to him,
the captain of the wrecked vessel shall enter a protest against him before two sea officials of
the losses and damages resulting therefrom, ratifying the complaint within twenty-four hours
after arrival at the first port, and including it in the proceedings he must institute in
accordance with the provisions contained in Article 612.

Should it not be possible to transfer to the other vessels the entire cargo of the one wrecked,
the goods of the highest value and smallest volume shall be saved first, the designation
thereof being made by the captain, in concurrence with the officers of his vessel.

ARTICLE 844. A captain who may have taken on board the goods saved from the wreck shall
continue his course to the port of destination, and on arrival shall deposit the same, with
judicial intervention, at the disposal of their legitimate owners.

In case of changing his course, should he be able to unload them at the port to which they
were consigned, the captain may make said port if the shippers or supercargoes present
consent thereto, as well as the officers and passengers of the vessel; but he can not do so,
even with said consent, in time of war or when the port is difficult to make and dangerous.
All the expenses of this arrival shall be defrayed by the owners of the cargo, as well as the
payment of the freight, which, taking into consideration the circumstances of the case, are
fixed by agreement or by a judicial decision.

ARTICLE 845. If there should not be on the vessel any person interested in the cargo to pay the
expenses and freight corresponding to the salvage, the judge or court of competent
jurisdiction may order the sale of the part necessary to cover the same. This shall also be
done when its preservation is dangerous, or when in the period of one year it should not have
been possible to ascertain who are its legitimate owners.

In both cases the proceedings regarding publicity and formalities prescribed in Article 579
shall be observed, and the net proceeds of the sale shall be deposited in a safe place, in the
judgment of the judge or court, in order to be turned over to the legitimate owners thereof.

TITLE V Proof and Liquidation of Averages

SECTION I Provisions Common to All Kinds of Averages

ARTICLE 846. The persons interested in the proof and liquidation of averages may mutually
agree and bind themselves at any time with regard to the liability, liquidation, and payment
thereof. t

In the absence of agreements, the following rules shall be observed:

1. The proof of the average shall take place in the port where the repairs are made, should
any be necessary, or in the port of unloading.

2. The liquidation shall take place in the port of unloading should it be a Spanish * port.

3. Should the average have occurred outside of the waters under the jurisdiction of the
Philippines or the cargo should have been sold in a foreign port by reason of an arrival under
stress, the liquidations shall be made in the port of arrival.

4. If the average should have occurred near the port of destination, so that said port can be
made, the proceedings treated of in Rules 1 and 2 shall be held there.

ARTICLE 847. In case of making the liquidation of the averages privately by virtue of
agreement, as well as when a judicial authority takes part therein at the request of any of the
parties interested who do not agree thereto, all of them shall be cited and heard, should they
not have renounced this right.

Should they not be present or not have a legitimate representative, the liquidation shall be
made by the consul in a foreign port, and where there is none, by the judge or court of
competent jurisdiction, according to the laws of the country, and for the account of the
proper person.
When the representative is a person well known in the place where the liquidation takes
place, his intervention shall be admitted and produce legal effects, even though he be
authorized only by a letter of the shipowner, freighter, or underwriter.

ARTICLE 848. Claims for averages shall not be admitted if they do not exceed 5 percent of the
interest which the claimant may have in the vessel or cargo if it is gross average, and 1
percent of the goods damaged if particular average, deducting in both cases the expenses of
appraisal, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.

ARTICLE 849. The damages, averages, loans on bottomry and respondentia, and their
premiums, and any other losses, shall not earn interest by reason of delay until the period of
three-days has elapsed, to be counted from the day on which the liquidation may have been
concluded and communicated to the persons interested in the vessel, in the cargo, or in both
at the same time.

ARTICLE 850. If by reason of one or more accidents of the sea particular and gross averages of
the vessel or the cargo, or of both, should take place on the same voyage, the expenses and
damages corresponding to each one shall be determined separately in the port where the
repairs are made or where the cargo is discharged, or sold, or the merchandise is benefited.

For this purpose the captains shall be obliged to demand of the expert appraisers and of the
contractors making the repairs, as well as of those appraising and taking part in the
unloading, repair, sale, or the benefiting of the merchandise, that they separate and detail
exactly in their appraisements or estimates and accounts all the expenses and damages
belonging to each average, and in those of each average those corresponding to the vessel
and to the cargo, stating also separately whether there are or not any damages proceeding
from the nature of the goods, and not by reason of a sea accident; and in case there should be
expenses common to the different averages and to the vessel and her cargo, there must be
calculated the amount corresponding to each and stated distinctly.

SECTION II Liquidation of Gross Averages

ARTICLE 851. At the instance of the captain, the adjustment, liquidation, and distribution of
gross averages shall be held privately, with the consent of all the parties in interest.

For this purpose, within forty-eight hours following the arrival of the vessel at the port, the
captain shall call all the persons interested, in order that they may decide as to whether the
adjustment or liquidation of the gross average is to be made by experts and liquidators
appointed by themselves, in which case this shall be done should the persons interested
agree.

Should an agreement not be possible, the captain shall apply to the judge or court of
competent jurisdiction, who shall be the one of the port where these proceedings are to be
held in accordance with the provisions of this Code, or to the consul of Spain, * should there
be one, and otherwise to the local authority when they are to be held in a foreign port.

ARTICLE 852. If the captain should not comply with the provisions contained in the foregoing
article, the shipowner or agent or the freighters shall demand the liquidation, without
prejudice to the action they may bring to demand indemnity from him.
ARTICLE 853. After the experts have been appointed by the persons interested, or by the
judge or court, before the acceptance, an examination of the vessel and of the repairs
required shall be made, as well as an estimate of their cost, separating these losses and
damages from those arising from the natural vice of the thing.

The experts shall also declare whether the repairs can be made immediately, or whether it is
necessary to unload the vessel to examine and repair her.

With regard to the merchandise, if the average should be visible at a mere glance, the
examination thereof must be made before it is delivered. Should it not be visible at the time
of unloading, said examination may be held after the delivery provided it is done within forty-
eight hours from the unloading and without prejudice to the other proofs which the experts
may deem necessary.

ARTICLE 854. The appraisement of the goods which are to contribute to the gross average,
and that of those which constitute the average, shall conform to the following rules:

1. The merchandise saved which is to contribute to the payment of the gross average shall be
valued at the current price thereof at the port of unloading, deducting the freights, customs
duties, and charges for unloading, as may appear from a material inspection of the same, not
taking into consideration the bills of lading, unless there is an agreement to the contrary.

2. If the liquidation is to take place in the port of sailing, the value of the merchandise loaded
shall be fixed by the purchase price, including the expenses until they are put on board,
excluding the insurance premium.

3. If the merchandise should be damaged, it shall be appraised at its true value.

4. If the voyage should be interrupted, the merchandise having been sold in a foreign port and
the average can not be estimated, there shall be taken as the contributing capital the value of
the merchandise in the port of arrival, or the net proceeds obtained at the sale thereof.

5. Merchandise lost, which should constitute the gross average, shall be appraised at the
value merchandise of its kind may have in the port of unloading, provided its kind and quality
appears in the bill of lading; and should this not be the case, the invoices of the purchase
issued in the port of shipment shall be taken as a basis, adding to its value the expenses and
freights subsequently arising.

6. The masts cut down, the sails, cables, and other equipment of the vessel rendered useless
for the purpose of saving her, shall be appraised at the current value, deducting one-third by
reason of the difference between new and old.

This deduction shall not be made in regard to anchors and chains.

7. The vessel shall be appraised at her real value in her condition at the time.

8. The freights shall represent 50 per cent by way of contributing capital.

ARTICLE 855. The merchandise loaded on the upper deck of the vessel shall contribute to the
gross average should it be saved; but there shall be no right to indemnity if it should be lost
by reason of being jettisoned for general safety, except when the marine ordinances allow its
shipment in this manner in coastwise navigation.

The same shall take place with that which is on board and is not included in the bills of lading
or inventories, according to the cases.

In any case the shipowner and the captain shall be liable to freighters for the loss of the
jettison, if the storage on the upper deck took place without the consent of the latter.

ARTICLE 856. Provisions and munitions of war which the vessel may have on board shall not
contribute to the gross average, nor the clothing used by the captain, officers, and crew.

There shall also be excepted the clothing used by the freighters, supercargoes, and
passengers who may be on board at the time of the jettison.

Neither shall the goods jettisoned contribute to the payment of the gross averages which may
occur to those saved in a different and subsequent risk.

ARTICLE 857. After the appraisement of the goods saved has been concluded by the experts,
as well as that of the goods lost which constitute the gross average, and after the repairs have
been made to the vessel, should any have to be made, and in such case after the approval of
the accounts of the same by the persons interested or by the judge or court, the entire record
shall be turned over to the liquidator appointed, in order that he may proceed with the
distribution of the average.

ARTICLE 858. In order to effect the liquidation the liquidator shall examine the sworn
statement of the captain, comparing it, if necessary, with the log book and all the contracts
which may have been made between the persons interested in the average, the
appraisements, expert examinations, and accounts of repairs made. If, as a result of this
examination, he should find any defect in this procedure which might injure the rights of the
persons interested or affect the liability of the captain, he shall call attention thereto in order
that it be corrected, if possible, and otherwise he shall include it in the preliminaries of the
liquidation.

Immediately thereafter he shall proceed with the distribution of the amount of the average,
for which purpose he shall fix:

1. The contributing capital, which he shall determine by the value of the cargo, in accordance
with the rules established in Article 854.

2. That of the vessel in her actual condition, according to a statement of experts.

3. The 50 per cent of the amount of the freight, deducting the remaining 50 per cent for wages
and maintenance of the crew.

After the amount of the gross average has been determined in accordance with the provisions
of this Code, it shall be distributed pro rata  among the goods which are to cover the same.
ARTICLE 859. The underwriters of the vessel, of the freight, and of the cargo shall be obliged
to pay for the indemnity of the gross average in so far as is required of each one of these
objects respectively.

ARTICLE 860. If, notwithstanding the jettison of the merchandise, breakage of masts, ropes,
and equipment, the vessel should be lost running said risk, no contribution whatsoever by
reason of gross average shall be proper.

The owners of the goods saved shall not be liable for the indemnity of those jettisoned, lost,
or damaged.

ARTICLE 861. If, after the vessel having been saved from the risk which gave rise to the
jettison, she should be lost through another accident taking place during the voyage, the
goods saved and existing from the first risk shall continue liable to contribution by reason of
the gross average according to their value in their condition at the time, deducting the
expenses incurred in saving them.

ARTICLE 862. If, notwithstanding the saving of the vessel and of her cargo in consequence of
the cutting down of masts or of any other damage deliberately done to the vessel for said
purpose, the merchandise should subsequently be lost or stolen, the captain can not demand
of the shippers or consignees that they contribute to indemnity for the average unless the
loss should occur by an act of the owner or consignee.

ARTICLE 863. If the owner of the jettisoned goods should recover them after having received
the indemnity for gross average, he shall be obliged to return to the captain and to other
persons interested in the cargo the amount he may have received, deducting the damage
caused by the jettison and the expenses incurred in their recovery.

In the latter case, the amount returned shall be distributed between the vessel and the
persons interested in the cargo in the same proportion in which they contributed to the
payment of the average.

ARTICLE 864. If the owner of the goods jettisoned should recover them without having
demanded any indemnity he shall not be obliged to contribute to the payment of the gross
average which may have been suffered by the rest of the cargo after the jettison.

ARTICLE 865. The distribution of the gross average shall not be final until it has been agreed
to, or in the absence thereof, until it has been approved by the judge or court after an
examination of the liquidation and a hearing of the persons interested who may be present,
or of their representatives.

ARTICLE 866. After the liquidation has been approved it shall be the duty of the captain to
collect the amount of the distribution, and he shall be liable to the owners of the goods
averaged for the losses they suffer through his delay or negligence.

ARTICLE 867. If the contributors should not pay the amount of the assessment within the
third day after having been requested to do so, the goods saved shall be attached, at the
request of the captain, and shall be sold to cover the payment.
ARTICLE 868. If the persons interested in receiving the goods saved should not give security
sufficient to answer for the amount corresponding to the gross average, the captain may
defer the delivery thereof until payment has been made.

SECTION III Liquidation of Ordinary Averages

ARTICLE 869. The experts which the judge or court or the persons interested may appoint,
according to the cases, shall proceed with the appraisement and examination of the averages
in the manner prescribed in Article 853 and in Article 854, Rules 2 to 7, in so far as they are
applicable.
October 12, 1929

WARSAW CONVENTION FOR THE UNIFICATION OF CERTAIN RULES RELATING TO

INTERNATIONAL CARRIAGE BY AIR *

The President of the German Reich, the Federal President of the Republic of Austria, His
Majesty the King of the Belgians, the President of the United States of Brazil, His Majesty the
King of the Bulgarians, the President of the Nationalist Government of China, His Majesty the
King of Denmark and Iceland, His Majesty the King of Egypt, His Majesty the King of Spain, the
Chief of State of the Republic of Estonia, the President of the Republic of Finland, the
President of the French Republic, His Majesty the King of Great Britain, Ireland, and the British
Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, the President of the Hellenic Republic, His
Most Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary, His Majesty the King of Italy, His
Majesty the Emperor of Japan, the President of the Republic of Latvia, Her Royal Highness the
Grand Duchess of Luxemburg, the President of the United Mexican States, His Majesty the
King of Norway, Her Majesty the Queen of the Netherlands, the President of the Republic of
Poland, His Majesty the King of Rumania, His Majesty the King of Sweden, the Swiss Federal
Council, the President of the Czechoslovak Republic, the Central Executive Committee of the
Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, the President of the United States of Venezuela, His
Majesty the King of Yugoslavia:

Having recognized the advantage of regulating in a uniform manner the conditions of

international transportation by air in respect of the documents used for such transportation
and of the liability of the carrier,

Having nominated to this end their respective Plenipotentiaries, who, being thereto duly
authorized, have concluded and signed the following convention:

CHAPTER I Scope of Definitions

ARTICLE 1. (1) This convention shall apply to all international transportation of persons,
baggage, or goods performed by aircraft for hire. It shall apply equally to gratuitous
transportation by aircraft performed by an air transportation enterprise.

(2) For the purposes of this convention the expression "international transportation" shall
mean any transportation in which, according to the contract made by the parties, the place of
departure and the place of destination, whether or not there be a break in the transportation
or a transshipment, are situated either within the territories of two High Contracting Parties,
or within the territory of a single High Contracting Party, if there is an agreed stopping place
within a territory subject to the sovereignty, suzerainty, mandate or authority of another
power, even though that power is not a party to this convention. Transportation without such
an agreed stopping place between territories subject to the sovereignty, suzerainty, mandate,
or authority of the same High Contracting Party shall not be deemed to be international for
the purposes of this convention.

(3) Transportation to be performed by several successive air carriers shall be deemed, for the
purposes of this convention, to be one undivided transportation, if it has been regarded by
the parties as a single operation, whether it has been agreed upon under the form of a single
contract or of a series of contracts, and it shall not lose its international character merely
because one contract or a series of contracts is to be performed entirely within a territory
subject to the sovereignty, suzerainty, mandate, or authority of the same High Contracting
Party.

ARTICLE 2. (1) This convention shall apply to transportation performed by the state or by legal
entities constituted under public law provided it falls within the conditions laid down in
Article 1.

2. This convention shall not apply to transportation performed under the terms of any
international postal convention.

CHAPTER II Transportation Documents

SECTION I Passenger Ticket

ARTICLE 3. (1) For the transportation of passengers the carrier must deliver a passenger ticket
which shall contain the following particulars:

(a) The place and date of issue;

(b) The place of departure and of destination;

(c) The agreed stopping places, provided that the carrier may reserve the right to alter the
stopping places in case of necessity, and that if he exercises that right, the alteration shall not
have the effect of depriving the transportation of its international character;

(d) The name and address of the carrier or carriers;

(e) A statement that the transportation is subject to the rules relating to liability established
by this convention.
(2) The absence, irregularity, or loss of the passenger ticket shall not affect the existence or
the validity of the contract of transportation, which shall none the less be subject to the rules
of this convention. Nevertheless, if the carrier accepts a passenger without a passenger ticket
having been delivered he shall not be entitled to avail himself of those provisions of this
convention which exclude or limit his liability.

SECTION II Baggage Check

ARTICLE 4. (1) For the transportation of baggage, other than small personal objects of which
the passenger takes charge himself, the carrier must deliver a baggage check.

(2) The baggage check shall be made out in duplicate, one part for the passenger and the
other part for the carrier.

(3) The baggage check shall contain the following particulars:

(a) The place and date of issue;

(b) The place of departure and of destination;

(c) The name and address of the carrier or carriers;

(d) The number of the passenger ticket;

(e) A statement that delivery of the baggage will be made to the bearer of the baggage check;

(f) The number and weight of the packages;

(g) The amount of the value declared in accordance with article 22 (2);

(h) A statement that the transportation is subject to the rules relating to liability established
by this convention.

(4) The absence, irregularity, or loss of the baggage check shall not affect the existence or the
validity of the contract of transportation which shall nonetheless be subject to the rules of
this convention. Nevertheless, if the carrier accepts baggage without a baggage check having
been delivered, or if the baggage check does not contain the particulars set out at ( d), (f), and
(h) above, the carrier shall not be entitled to avail himself of those provisions of the
convention which exclude or limit his ability.

SECTION III Air Waybill

ARTICLE 5. (1) Every carrier of goods has the right to require the consignor to make out and
hand over to him a document called an "air waybill"; every consignor has the right to require
the carrier to accept this document.

(2) The absence, irregularity, or loss of this document shall not affect the existence or the
validity of the contract of transportation which shall, subject to the provisions of Article 9, be
none the less governed by the rules of this convention.

ARTICLE 6. (1) The air waybill shall be made out by the consignor in three original parts and
be handed over with the goods.

(2) The first part shall be marked "for the carrier", and shall be signed by the consignor. The
second part shall be marked "for the consignee"; it shall be signed by the consignor and by
the carrier and shall accompany the goods. The third part shall be signed by the carrier and
handed by him to the consignor after the goods have been accepted.

(3) The carrier shall sign on acceptance of the goods.

(4) The signature of the carrier may be stamped; that of the consignor may be printed or
stamped.

(5) If, at the request of the consignor, the carrier makes out the air waybill, he shall be
deemed, subject to proof to the contrary, to have done so on behalf of the consignor.

ARTICLE 7. The carrier of goods has the right to require the consignor to make out separate
waybills when there is more than one package.

ARTICLE 8. The air waybill shall contain the following particulars:

(a) The place and date of its execution;

(b) The place of departure and of destination;

(c) The agreed stopping places, provided that the carrier may reserve the right to alter the
stopping places in case of necessity, and that if he exercises that right the alteration shall not
have the effect of depriving the transportation of its international character;

(d) The name and address of the consignor;

(e) The name and address of the first carrier;

(f) The name and address of the consignee, if the case so requires;

(g) The nature of the goods;

(h) The number of packages, the method of packing, and the particular marks or numbers
upon them;

(i) The weight, the quantity, the volume, or dimensions of the goods;

(j) The apparent condition of the goods and of the packing;

(k) The freight, if it has been agreed upon, the date and place of payment, and the person who
is to pay it;

(l) If the goods are sent for payment on delivery, the price of the goods, and, if the case so
requires, the amount of the expenses incurred;

(m) The amount of the value declared in accordance with Article 22 (2).

(n) The number of parts of the air waybill;

(o) The documents handed to the carrier to accompany the air waybill;

(p) The time fixed for the completion of the transportation and a brief note of the route to be
followed, if these matters have been agreed upon;

(q) A statement that the transportation is subject to the rules relating to liability established
by this convention.

ARTICLE 9. If the carrier accepts goods without an air waybill having been made out, or if the
air waybill does not contain all the particulars set out in Article 8 (a) to (i), inclusive, and (q),
the carrier shall not be entitled to avail himself of the provisions of this convention which
exclude or limit his liability.

ARTICLE 10. (1) The consignor shall be responsible for the correctness of the particulars and
statements relating to the goods which he inserts in the air waybill.

(2) The consignor shall be liable for all damages suffered by the carrier or any other person by
reason of the irregularity, incorrectness or incompleteness of the said particulars and
statements.

ARTICLE 11. (1) The air waybill shall be  prima facie  evidence of the conclusion of the contract,
of the receipt of the goods and of the conditions of transportation.

(2) The statements in the air waybill relating to the weight, dimensions, and packing of the
goods, as well as those relating to the number of packages, shall be  prima facie evidence of
the facts stated; those relating to the quantity, volume and condition of the goods shall not
constitute evidence against the carrier except so far as they both have been, and are stated in
the air waybill to have been, checked by him in the presence of the consignor, or relate to the
apparent condition of the goods.

ARTICLE 12. (1) Subject to his liability to carry out all his obligations under the contract of
transportation, the consignor shall have the right to dispose of the goods by withdrawing
them at the airport of departure or destination, or by stopping them in the course of the
journey on any landing, or by calling for them to be delivered at the place of destination, or in
the course of the journey to a person other than the consignee named in the air waybill, or by
requiring them to be returned to the airport of departure. He must not exercise this right of
disposition in such a way as to prejudice the carrier or other consignors, and he must repay
any expenses occasioned by the exercise of this right.
(2) If it is impossible to carry out the orders of the consignor the carrier must so inform him
forthwith.

(3) If the carrier obeys the orders of the consignor for the disposition of the goods without
requiring the production of the part of the air waybill delivered to the latter, he will be liable,
without prejudice to his right of recovery from the consignor, for any damage which may be
caused thereby to any person who is lawfully in possession of that part of the air waybill.

(4) The right conferred on the consignor shall cease at the moment when that of the
consignee begins in accordance with Article 13, below. Nevertheless, if the consignee declines
to accept the waybill or the goods, or if he cannot be communicated with, the consignor shall
resume his right of disposition.

ARTICLE 13. (1) Except in the circumstances set out in the preceding article, the consignee
shall be entitled, on arrival of the goods at the place of destination, to require the carrier to
hand over to him the air waybill and to deliver the goods to him, on payment of the charges
due and on complying with the conditions of transportation set out in the air waybill.

(2) Unless it is otherwise agreed, it shall be the duty of the carrier to give notice to the
consignee as soon as the goods arrive.

(3) If the carrier admits the loss of the goods, or if the goods have not arrived at the expiration
of seven days after the date on which they ought to have arrived, the consignee shall be
entitled to put into force against the carrier the rights which flow from the contract of
transportation.

ARTICLE 14. The consignor and the consignee can respectively enforce all the rights given
them by Articles 12 and 13, each in his own name, whether he is acting in his own interest or
in the interest of another, provided that he carries out the obligations imposed by the
contract.

ARTICLE 15. (1) Articles 12, 13, and 14 shall not affect either the relations of the consignor and
the consignee with each other or the relations of third parties whose rights are derived either
from the consignor or from the consignee.

(2) The provisions of Article 12, 13, and 14 can only be varied by express provision in the air
waybill.

ARTICLE 16. (1) The consignor must furnish such information and attach to the air waybill
such documents as are necessary to meet the formalities of customs, octroi, or police before
the goods can be delivered to the consignee. The consignor shall be liable to the carrier for
any damage occasioned by the absence, insufficiency, or irregularity of any such information
or documents, unless the damage is due to the fault of the carrier or his agents.

(2) The carrier is under no obligation to enquire into the correctness or sufficiency of such
information or documents.
 CHAPTER III Liability of the Carrier
ARTICLE 17. The carrier shall be liable for damage sustained in the event of the death or
wounding of a passenger or any other bodily injury suffered by a passenger, if the accident
which caused the damage so sustained took place on board the aircraft or in the course of
any of the operations of embarking or disembarking.

ARTICLE 18. (1) The carrier shall be liable for damage sustained in the event of the destruction
or loss of, or of damage to, any checked baggage or any goods, if the occurrence which
caused the damage so sustained took place during the transportation by air.

(2) The transportation by air within the meaning of the preceding paragraph shall comprise
the period during which the baggage or goods are in charge of the carrier, whether in an
airport or on board an aircraft, or, in the case of a landing outside an airport, in any place
whatsoever.

(3) The period of the transportation by air shall not extend to any transportation by land, by
sea, or by river performed outside an airport. If, however, such transportation takes place in
the performance of a contract for transportation by air, for the purpose of loading, delivery or
transshipment, any damage is presumed, subject to proof to the contrary, to have been the
result of an event which took place during the transportation by air.

ARTICLE 19. The carrier shall be liable for damage occasioned by delay in the transportation
by air of passengers, baggage, or goods.

ARTICLE 20. (1) The carrier shall not be liable if he proves that he and his agents have taken all
necessary measures to avoid the damage or that it was impossible for him or them to take
such measures.

(2) In the transportation of goods and baggage the carrier shall not be liable if he proves that
the damage was occasioned by an error in piloting, in the handling of the aircraft, or in
navigation and that, in all other respects, he and his agents have taken all necessary
measures to avoid the damage.

ARTICLE 21. If the carrier proves that the damage was caused by or contributed to by the
negligence of the injured person the court may, in accordance with the provisions of its own
law, exonerate the carrier wholly or partly from his liability.

ARTICLE 22. (1) In the transportation of passengers the liability of the carrier for each
passenger shall be limited to the sum of 125,000 francs. Where, in accordance with the law of
the court to which the case is submitted, damages may be awarded in the form of periodical
payments, the equivalent capital value of the said payments shall not exceed 125,000 francs.
Nevertheless, by special contract, the carrier and the passenger may agree to a higher limit of
liability.

(2) In the transportation of checked baggage and of goods, the liability of the carrier shall be
limited to a sum of 250 francs per kilogram, unless the consignor has made, at the time when
the package was handed over to the carrier, a special declaration of the value at delivery and
has paid a supplementary sum if the case so requires. In that case the carrier will be liable to
pay a sum not exceeding the declared sum, unless he proves that the sum is greater than the
actual value to the consignor at delivery.

(3) As regards objects of which the passenger takes charge himself the liability of the carrier
shall be limited to 5,000 francs per passenger.

(4) The sums mentioned above shall be deemed to refer to the French franc consisting of 65½
milligrams of gold at the standard of fineness of nine hundred thousandths. These sums may
be converted into any national currency in round figures.

ARTICLE 23. Any provision tending to relieve the carrier of liability or to fix a lower limit than
that which is laid down in this convention shall be null and avoid, but the nullity of any such
provision shall not involve the nullity of the whole contract, which shall remain subject to the
provisions of this convention.

ARTICLE 24. (1) In the cases covered by Articles 18 and 19 any action for damages, however
founded, can only be brought subject to the conditions and limits set out in this convention.

(2) In the cases covered by Article 17 the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall also
apply, without prejudice to the questions as to who are the persons who have the right to
bring suit and what are their respective rights.

ARTICLE 25. (1) The carrier shall not be entitled to avail himself of the provisions of this
convention which exclude or limit his liability, if the damage is caused by his wilful
misconduct or by such default on his part as, in accordance with the law of the court to which
the case is submitted, is considered to be equivalent to wilful misconduct.

(2) Similarly the carrier shall not be entitled to avail himself of the said provisions, if the
damage is caused under the same circumstances by any agent of the carrier acting within the
scope of his employment.

ARTICLE 26. (1) Receipt by the person entitled to the delivery of baggage or goods without
complaint shall be  prima facie  evidence that the same have been delivered in good condition
and in accordance with the document of transportation.

(2) In case of damage, the person entitled to delivery must complain to the carrier forthwith
after the discovery of the damage, and, at the latest, within 3 days from the date of receipt in
the case of baggage and 7 days from the date of receipt in the case of goods. In case of delay
the complaint must be made at the latest within 14 days from the date on which the baggage
or goods have been placed at his disposal.

(3) Every complaint must be made in writing-upon the document of transportation or by

separate notice in writing dispatched within the times aforesaid.

(4) Failing complaint within the times aforesaid, no action shall lie against the carrier, save in
the case of fraud on his part.

ARTICLE 27. In the case of the death of the person liable, an action for damages lies in
accordance with the terms of this convention against those legally representing his estate.
ARTICLE 28. (1) An action for damages must be brought, at the option of the plaintiff, in the
territory of one of the High Contracting Parties, either before the court of the domicile of the
carrier or of his principal place of business or where he has a place of business through which
the contract has been made or before the court at the place of destination.

(2) Questions of procedure shall be governed by the law of the court to which the case is
submitted.

ARTICLE 29. (1) The right to damages shall be extinguished if an action is not brought within 2
years, reckoned from the date of arrival at the destination, or from the date on which the
aircraft ought to have arrived, or from the date on which the transportation stopped.

(2) The method of calculating the period of limitation shall be determined by the law of the
court to which the case is submitted.

ARTICLE 30. (1) In the case of transportation to be performed by various successive carriers
and falling within the definition set out in the third paragraph of Article 1, each carrier who
accepts passengers, baggage or goods shall be subject to the rules set out in this convention,
and shall be deemed to be one of the contracting parties to the contract of transportation
insofar as the contract deals with that part of the transportation which is performed under his
supervision.

(2) In the case of transportation of this nature, the passenger or his representative can take
action only against the carrier who performed the transportation during which the accident
or the delay occurred, save in the case where, by express agreement, the first carrier has
assumed liability for the whole journey.

(3) As regards baggage or goods, the passenger or consignor shall have a right of action
against the first carrier, and the passenger or consignee who is entitled to delivery shall have
a right of action against the last carrier, and further, each may take action against the carrier
who performed the transportation during which the destruction, loss, damage, or delay took
place. These carriers shall be jointly and severally liable to the passenger or to the consignor
or consignee.

CHAPTER IV Provisions Relating to Combined

Transportation
ARTICLE 31. (1) In the case of combined transportation performed partly by air and partly by
any other mode of transportation, the provisions of this convention shall apply only to the
transportation, by air, provided that the transportation by air falls within the terms of Article
1.

(2) Nothing in this convention shall prevent the parties in the case of combined
transportation from inserting in the document of air transportation conditions relating to
other modes of transportation, provided that the provisions of this convention are observed
as regards the transportation by air.

CHAPTER V General and Final Provisions

ARTICLE 32. Any clause contained in the contract and all special agreements entered into
before the damage occurred by which the parties purport to infringe the rules laid down by
this convention, whether by deciding the law to be applied, or by altering the rules as to
jurisdiction, shall be null and void. Nevertheless for the transportation of goods arbitration
clauses shall be allowed, subject to this convention, if the arbitration is to take place within
one of the jurisdictions referred to in the first paragraph of article 28.

ARTICLE 33. Nothing contained in this convention shall prevent the carrier either from
refusing to enter into any contract of transportation or from making regulations which do not
conflict with the provisions of this convention.

ARTICLE 34. This convention shall not apply to international transportation by air performed
by way of experimental trial by air navigation enterprises with the view to the establishment
of regular lines of air navigation, nor shall it apply to transportation performed in
extraordinary circumstances outside the normal scope of an air carrier's business.

ARTICLE 35. The expression "days" when used in this convention means current days, not
working days.

ARTICLE 36. This convention is drawn up in French in a single copy which shall remain
deposited in the archives of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Poland and of which one duly
certified copy shall be sent by the Polish Government to the Government of each of the High
Contracting Parties.

ARTICLE 37. (1) This convention shall be ratified. The instruments of ratification shall be
deposited in the archives of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Poland, which shall give notice
of the deposit to the Government of each of the High Contracting Parties.

(2) As soon as this convention shall have been ratified by five of the High Contracting Parties it
shall come into force as between them on the ninetieth day after the deposit of the fifth
ratification. Thereafter it shall come into force between the High Contracting Parties which
shall have ratified and the High Contracting Party which deposits its instrument of ratification
on the ninetieth day after the deposit.

(3) It shall be the duty of the Government of the Republic of Poland to notify the Government
of each of the High Contracting Parties of the date on which this convention comes into force
as well as the date of the deposit of each ratification.

ARTICLE 38. (1) This convention shall, after it has come into force, remain open for adherence
by any state.
(2) The adherence shall be effected by a notification addressed to the Government of the
Republic of Poland, which shall inform the Government of each of the High Contracting
Parties thereof.

(3) The adherence shall take effect as from the ninetieth day after the notification made to the
Government of the Republic of Poland.

ARTICLE 39. (1) Any one of the High Contracting Parties may denounce this convention by a
notification addressed to the Government of the Republic of Poland, which shall at once
inform the Government of each of the High Contracting Parties.

(2) Denunciation shall take effect six months after the notification of denunciation, and shall
operate only as regards the party which shall have proceeded to denunciation.

ARTICLE 40. (1) Any High Contracting Party may, at the time of signature or of deposit of
ratification or of adherence, declare that the acceptance which it gives to this convention
does not apply to all or any of its colonies, protectorates, territories under mandate, or any
other territory subject to its sovereignty or its authority, or any other territory under its
suzerainty.

(2) Accordingly any High Contracting Party may subsequently adhere separately in the name
of all or any of its colonies, protectorates, territories under mandate, or any other territory
subject to its sovereignty or to its authority or any other territory under its suzerainty which
have been thus excluded by its original declaration.

(3) Any High Contracting Party may denounce this Convention, in accordance with its
provisions, separately or for all or any of its colonies, protectorates, territories under
mandate, or any other territory subject to its sovereignty or to its authority, or any other
territory under its suzerainty.

ARTICLE 41. Any High Contracting Party shall be entitled not earlier than two years after the
coming into force of this convention to call for the assembling of a new international
conference in order to consider any improvements which may be made in this convention. To
this end it will communicate with the Government of the French Republic which will take the
necessary measures to make preparations for such conference.

ADDITIONAL PROTOCOL With Reference to Article 2

The High Contracting Parties reserve to themselves the right to declare at the time of
ratification or of accession that the first paragraph of Article 2 of this convention shall not
apply to international transportation by air performed directly by the state, its colonies,
protectorates, or mandated territories, or by any other territory under its sovereignty,
suzerainty, or authority.

Parties to the Convention as of December 31, 1965:

Algeria India
Argentina Indonesia
Australia 1 Ireland
Austria Israel
Belgium Italy
Brazil Ivory Coast
Bulgaria Jamaica
Burma Japan
Cameroon Kenya
Canada 2 People's Democratic
Republic of Korea
Ceylon Laos
People's Republic of China Latvia
Congo (Brazzaville) Lebanon
Congo (Leopoldville) Liberia
Cuba 2 Liechtenstein
Cyprus Luxembourg
Czechoslovakia Madagascar
Dahomey Malawi
Denmark Malaysia
Ethiopia Mali
Finland Malta
France Mauritania
Gambia Mexico
German Democratic Mongolian People's
Republic Republic
Federal Republic of Morocco
Germany 3
Ghana Netherlands 4
Greece New Zealand
Guinea Niger
Hungary Syrian Arab Republic
Iceland Tanzania
Nigeria Trinidad and Tobago
Norway Tunisia
Pakistan 2 Uganda
Philippines Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics
Poland United Arab Republic
Portugal United Kingdom 5
Rumania United States 2, 6
Rwanda Upper Volta
Senegal Venezuela
Sierra Leone Vietnam
Somali Republic Western Samoa
South Africa Yugoslavia
Spain Zambia
Sweden  
Switzerland

Footnotes

1.Including Papua, Norfolk Islands and the trust territories of New Guinea and Nauru.

2.With reservation.

3.Including Land Berlin.

4.Including Surinam and Curacao.

5.Including Aden and Protectorate of South Arabia, Antigua, Ascencion Islands, Bahamas,
Barbados, Basutoland, Bechuanaland, Bermuda, British Guiana, British Honduras British
Solomon Islands, Brunei, Caicos, Caymen Islands, Channel Islands, Dominica, Falkland
Islands, Fiji Islands, Gibraltar, Gilbert and Ellice Islands, Grenada, Hong Kong, Isle of Man,
Mauritius, Montserrat, Rhodesia, St. Christopher, Nevis, St. Helena, St. Lucia, St. Vincent,
Seychelles, Swaziland, Tonga, Turks, Virgin Islands.

6.Notification of denunciation received November 15, 1965, effective May 15, 1966.

(Warsaw Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules Relating to International Carriage by
Air, [1929])