The Legal System for the Liability of the Sea Carrier regarding the Electronic Sales Contract

عنوان المقال: النظام القانوني لمسؤولية الناقل البحري عن عقد البيع الإلكتروني

Abstract

The legal system for transport varies depending on the means of transport and the medium in which it is performed, such that a special legal system exists for each of land transport, maritime transport, and air transport. Furthermore, the difference in the subject matter of transport necessitated the application of a different legal system depending on whether the transport is of things or persons.
It is noted that maritime transport is subject to special rules contained in the Algerian Maritime Code and the Brussels Convention related to the Unification of Certain Rules of Law relating to Bills of Lading signed on 25/08/1924. However, the inability of this convention, in lived reality, to keep pace with economic development - since it served the interests of carrier nations more than shipping nations, especially in the field of exemption from liability -created a need to change this situation. This led to the appearance of the amending Protocol to the Brussels Convention in 1968, followed by the Protocol amending this Protocol in 1997, and before that, the Hamburg Convention was signed on 31/03/1978, from which the Algerian legislator derived most of his provisions regarding the liability of the sea carrier.
The liability of the sea carrier holds extreme importance among various topics of maritime law, thus occupying the forefront among transport topics due to the numerous disputes it raises before the judiciary because of the obstacles and problems that may encounter the process of transporting goods, which may lead to the damage of goods, potentially inflicting considerable harm on their owner, often substantial due to the large quantity transported across the sea.
The provisions of the sea carrier's liability are of great importance, which prompted the Algerian legislator to regulate them in the manner that will be elucidated.