NORWAY Law and Practice Contributed by: Kristian Lindhartsen, Lilly Kathrin Relling and Tobias Kilde, Kvale Advokatfirma DA
the loss or damage was not due to their own fault or neglect or that of any of their agents or servants. This also applies if the carriage is wholly or partially carried out by a sub-carrier. There are, however, certain exceptions. The carrier is not liable for damage or delays caused by nautical errors or fire (unless caused by the negligence of the carrier), unless the ship-owner has failed to take all reasonable steps to ensure that the vessel was sea - worthy on departure. Note that the exceptions for navigational error and fire do not apply for domestic trade. Furthermore, a carrier will not be liable for damage to animals if the carrier acted with due care and the damage resulted from particular perils associated with the transportation of animals. The ship-owners’ liability is limited. Section 280 of the Norwegian Maritime Code states that the car - rier’s liability is limited to 667 Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) for each unit or package of the goods, or two SDRs for each kilogram of the gross weight of the goods claimed for damage, delay or loss. In domestic trade, the carrier can limit the liability to 17 SDRs for each kilogram of the gross weight of the damaged or lost goods. Liability for delays in domestic trade may not exceed the total freight under the transportation agreement. It is also worth noting that a voyage charterer or time charterer must hold the carrier harmless if the bill of lading contains terms other than those stated in the charterparty, thereby increasing the liability of the car - rier. 4.4 Misdeclaration of Cargo In accordance with Section 301 of the Norwegian Maritime Code, the carrier can claim against the ship - per for liability they have incurred as a result of mis- declared cargo. However, the carrier cannot establish a claim against the shipper if they knew or should have known that the information was not correct. If a clean bill was issued against a letter of indemnity (LOI), for instance,
the carrier loses its statutory right to claim against the shipper. The same will apply even if there is no explicit agreement to issue a clean bill, if the carrier had an incentive to inspect the cargo more closely or it was visible that the cargo was not in apparent good order. In the judgment ND 1969 s.105 Stockholm rådhus - rätt, Hood River Valley , which is part of the collection of Nordic Maritime Judgments, it was stated that the carrier must consider not only the state of the cargo but also the state of the packaging. Therefore, the courts would consider the carrier’s overall knowledge about the cargo, the packaging and the transportation when considering a potential recourse claim against the shipper. 4.5 Time Bar for Filing Claims for Damaged or Lost Cargo Under Norwegian law, the general time limit for filing a claim for damaged or lost cargo, or for incorrect infor - mation in a bill of lading, is one year from the time the goods were or should have been delivered (Section 501 (7) of the Norwegian Maritime Code). For recourse claims related to damage to or loss of cargo, the deadline is one year from the time the origi - nal claim was paid or legal proceedings were insti - tuted. The limitation period can be extended by agreement between the parties after the incident occurred, for up to three years at a time. 5. Maritime Liens and Ship Arrests 5.1 Ship Arrests Norway is party to the 1952 Arrest Convention, which is implemented in Chapter 4 of the Norwegian Mari - time Code. Norway is also a signatory to the 1999 Arrest Convention, which came into force in 2011 but has not yet been ratified. The relevant acts for ship arrests in Norway are the Maritime Code and the NDA. Under Norwegian law, the prerequisite for arrest of a ship is that the claim in question is defined as a maritime claim in accordance with Section 92 of the Norwegian Maritime Code. The provision exhaustively
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