Shipping 2026

UAE Law and Practice Contributed by: Abdelhak Attalah and Ghassan Hidar, Attalah Legal Consultancy

As for liability between carriers, the contractual carrier is fully responsible for all damages occurring during the carriage process. In contrast, the actual carrier is only liable for damages occurring during the portion of the journey they handle. The actual carrier and the contractual carrier share joint liability, and their liability is subject to the limitations outlined in the foregoing pursuant to Article 186 (2) of the ML. 4.4 Misdeclaration of Cargo Pursuant to Articles 159, 165, 169, 170 and 172 (3) of the ML, the shipper can be held liable for any mis - declaration of cargo, and the carrier has the right to claim compensation for any damage resulting from such misdeclaration. If cargo is discovered onboard that was misdeclared and not specified in the B/L, the ship’s Master has the authority to either offload the cargo at the port of origin or impose a charge equiva - lent to the highest freight rate applicable to similar cargo for delivery to the discharge port, as stated in the B/L. The foregoing is without prejudice to the carrier’s right to seek compensation. As the ML is newly implement - ed, there have been no recent rulings from UAE courts addressing or confirming claims under its provisions. This matter remains untested in the courts in the con - text of the new ML. However, in a previous case, the Dubai court’s ruling in Cassation No 612/2006 denied compensation for cargo loss to a B/L assignee, rea - soning that the loss was attributable to the shipper. 4.5 Time Bar for Filing Claims for Damaged or Lost Cargo A claim for damaged or lost cargo arising from a sea carriage contract or a multimodal carriage contract is subject to a one-year time limit, starting from the date of delivery or the date when delivery should have occurred, as outlined in Articles 187 (1) and 198 (1) of the ML. If the consignee refuses to accept delivery or abandons the cargo, the time limit is calculated from the date the vessel arrives. For tort liability, the time limit is three years. It is recommended that a claim be filed within the time limits set by law. However, the courts may allow a challenge to the time bar if the party entitled to invoke it waives their right. Any extension of the time bar

must be mutually agreed upon by all parties who are entitled to raise this defence.

5. Maritime Liens and Ship Arrests 5.1 Ship Arrests The UAE is not a party to either the International Con - vention on Arrest of Ships 1999 or the International Convention Relating to the Arrest of Sea-Going Ships 1952, although the latter has been largely incorpo - rated into UAE domestic law. Ship arrests in the UAE are primarily governed by Article 53 of the ML. Under the ML, vessels can be arrested to satisfy a “maritime debt”, which is a claim arising from any of the reasons listed in Article 53 (2). The new ML remains clear and succinct, emphasis - ing the key provisions while preserving the original intent. It expands the definition of “maritime debt” to encompass claims related to environmental damage caused by the vessel, coastline harm, wreck removal and port charges. 5.2 Maritime Liens The UAE does not recognise the traditional concept of maritime liens as seen in common law. However, under the ML, certain claims are acknowledged as privileged debts, which remain attached to the ves - sel regardless of ownership. These privileged debts can only be extinguished through a judicial sale of the vessel or by following the prescribed sale procedures outlined in the ML. Privileged debts under the ML arise in eight specific categories (Article 29 (1)–(8)). While these debts are not subject to formal procedures or special proof requirements (Article 30 (1)), there are certain instanc - es where privileged debts can be registered in the ship register, provided the contract is notarised. These instances include debts related to failure or damage that require compensation for the ship’s charterers (Article 29 (7)) and insurance premiums (Article 29 (8)).

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