SWEDEN Law and Practice Contributed by: Michele Fara, Ninos Aho, Paula Bäckdén and Anders Leissner, Advokatfirman Vinge KB
the company overcome its economic troubles and become profitable and stable. Chapter 2 of the Company Reorganisation Act sets out that while the corporate restructuring is in pro - gress, as a main rule, enforcement or other execution according to the Enforcement Code (1981:774) may not take place against the debtor. During this time, a creditor may not in any other way realise the debtor’s assets. This implies that the debtor’s property is pro - tected from individual creditor claims during a recon - struction procedure. 5.12 Damages in the Event of Wrongful Arrest of a Vessel If the arrest applicant has failed to initiate proceedings on the merits of the claim within one month, or if the applicant is unsuccessful in such proceedings so that the arrest is lifted, the applicant becomes strictly liable for all expenses and damages that the defendant suf - fers. The owner of the vessel has the right to seek compensation for damages resulting from a wrongful arrest by initiating separate legal proceedings against the applicant in court. 6. Passenger Claims 6.1 Laws and Conventions Applicable to the Resolution of Passenger Claims The liability of a carrier of passengers is regulated by Chapter 15 of the Swedish Maritime Code (1994:1009), which recaps the Athens Convention Relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea, 1974, as amended by the 2002 Protocol. Sweden has ratified the Athens Convention, as amended by the 2002 Protocol, and is further bound by EC Regula - tion 392/2009 on the liability of carriers of passengers by sea in the event of accidents, which incorporates the Athens Convention into EU law. Sweden is also bound by EC Regulation 1177/2010 concerning the rights of passengers when travelling by sea and inland waterways. The time limit of two years, which is initiated when the passenger disembarked from the vessel, and/or the luggage was brought from the vessel, can be inter - rupted only by initiation of legal proceedings at court.
The date of the filing of the suit is the date that the time bar is interrupted. Agreements on time-bar extensions are generally accepted in Sweden. 7. Enforcement of Law and Jurisdiction and Arbitration Clauses 7.1 Enforcement of Law and Jurisdiction Clauses Stated in Bills of Lading In general, Swedish courts will recognise and enforce law and jurisdiction clauses stated in bills of ladings. However, there are certain limitations for jurisdiction and arbitration clauses in Chapter 13 of the Swedish Maritime Code (1994:1009). In disputes concerning the carriage of cargo, a juris - diction clause may be void if it limits the claimant’s right to bring an action at the place where: • the respondent has its principal place of business or, in the absence thereof, its habitual residence; • the agreed contract of carriage was entered into, provided that the respondent has a place of busi - ness, a branch or an agency there through whom the contract was concluded; or • the agreed port of loading or the agreed actual port of discharge is situated. For arbitration clauses, the Swedish Maritime Code states that – as a part of the arbitration agreement – the claimant always has a right to request that the arbitration shall be pursued in one of the states where a place named in the foregoing list is situated. It should be noted that the aforementioned limitations do not apply to jurisdiction or arbitration clauses in cross-trade (ie, in traffic between non-Nordic states), nor to jurisdiction clauses if anything else follows from certain EU legal acts or international instruments. 7.2 Enforcement of Law and Arbitration Clauses Incorporated Into a Bill of Lading If a bill of lading is issued under a charterparty con - taining a provision on the competent court or an arbitration clause, without the bill of lading expressly mentioning that the provision/clause is binding on the holder of the bill of lading, the carrier may not
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