PHILIPPINES Law and Practice Contributed by: Valeriano Del Rosario, Daphne Ruby Grasparil, Patrick Sarmiento and Maria Francesca Bautista, VeraLaw
have taken advantage by filing legally unsubstantiated cases, with most of them decided in favour of seafar - ers. Even if a lower court’s decision is reversed by the Supreme Court, restitution of the paid award is usually slim as seafarers no longer have the assets to satisfy the writ of execution. Because of this, ship-owners are considering hiring seafarers of other nationalities for their vessels. The Philippine government realises the repercussions of these questionable claims and recognises the vital contribution of the manning industry to the nation’s economy. Thus, steps have been taken to “level the playing field” between seafarers and the ship-own - ers. Currently, pending legislation is awaiting signa - ture by the Philippine Congress, giving ship-owners a fair chance of recovering paid judgments, should the Supreme Court decide that the award is erroneous. MARINA also has a complaints process for cancel - lation of the seafarer’s identification and record book (SIRB) for those who received payment for full dis - ability benefits.
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