Admiralty court
Admiralty law |
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History |
Features |
Contract of carriage/Charterparty |
Parties |
Judiciaries |
International conventions |
International organizations |
Admiralty courts, also known as maritime courts, are courts exercising jurisdiction over all maritime contracts, torts, injuries, and offences.
Admiralty courts in the United Kingdom
England and Wales
Scotland
The Scottish court's earliest records, held in West Register House in Edinburgh, indicate that sittings were a regular event by at least 1556. Judges were styled "Judge Admiral" and received appointment at the hands of the Scottish High Admiral[a] to hear matters affecting the Royal Scots Navy as well as mercantile, privateering and prize money disputes. From 1702 the judge of the court was also authorised to appoint deputies to hear lesser matters or to deputise during his absence.[1]
The Scottish court's workload was small until the mid-eighteenth century, with judges hearing no more than four matters in each sitting. After the 1750s the volume of cases rose until by 1790 it was necessary to maintain a daily log of decisions.[1] The growth in caseload was related to increasing disputes regarding breaches of charter, including ship's masters seeking compensation for unpaid freight and merchants suing for damage to goods or unexpected port fees. Cases reflected Scotland's principal marine industries including the transshipment of sugar and tobacco and the export of dried fish, coal and grains. A smaller number of cases related to smuggling, principally brandy, and to salvage rights for ships wrecked on Scottish shores.[2] The court ceased operation in 1832 and its functions were subsumed into the Court of Session, Scotland's supreme court for civil disputes.[1][3]
Cinque Ports
The sole survivor of the independent courts of admiralty is the Court of Admiralty for the
In office | Name | Qualifications |
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1791–1809 | French Laurence | Doctor of Civil Law |
1809–1855 | Sir Joseph Phillimore | — |
1855–1875 | Rt Hon Sir Robert Phillimore
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Barrister-at-Law
|
1914–1936 | Rt Hon Sir Frederick Pollock | Barrister-at-Law, Fellow of the British Academy, Queen's Counsel, Privy Councillor |
1936–1961 | R. E. Knocker | Order of the British Empire |
1961–1967 | N. L. C. Macaskie | Queen's Counsel |
1967–1979 | Sir Henry Barnard | Barrister-at-Law, Queen's Counsel |
1979–1996 | Lieutenant-Commander Gerald Darling
|
Deputy Lieutenant , Barrister-at-Law, Queen's Counsel
|
1996–present | Lord Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony | — |
Court regalia
Since
The Admiralty Court of the
In addition to representing the court in session, from the nineteenth century the silver oar has been the insignia of the Admiralty Marshal - an official responsible for serving writs of the court, and carrying out the sale of any vessels seized and disposed of by court decision.[12]
Vice admiralty courts
Vice Admiralty Courts Act 1863 | |
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Act of Parliament | |
Dates | |
Royal assent | 8 June 1863 |
To expedite the administration of maritime law, British colonies were routinely granted subsidiary jurisdiction through independent vice-admiralty courts. These were civil courts with the power to interpret colonial legislation, provided these did not conflict with Admiralty Court decisions or British maritime law.
The first vice-admiralty court in Australia was established in the colony of New South Wales in 1788. The first Vice-Admiral was Arthur Phillip and the first judge was Robert Ross. The court was abolished in 1911 when the Supreme Court of New South Wales was granted the admiralty jurisdiction of the court.
A vice-admiralty court was also formed in Nova Scotia to try smugglers and to enforce the Sugar Act of 1764 throughout British North America. From 1763 to 1765, when American smugglers were caught, they were tried by corrupt judges who received a percentage of the confiscated goods if the defendants were found guilty; therefore, defendants were more than likely to be found guilty.
Colonial courts of admiralty
Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 | |
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Act of Parliament | |
Dates | |
Royal assent | 25 July 1890 |
Other legislation | |
Amended by | |
Text of statute as originally enacted | |
Text of the Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. |
1890 saw the enactment of the Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 (
Ceylon
A colonial court of admiralty was established in the
In Sri Lanka today, admiralty jurisdiction is exercised by the High Court of Colombo, having had the jurisdiction transferred to it from the Supreme Court under the provisions of the Judicature Act No.2 of 1978.[15]
Admiralty courts in the United States
In the United States, the federal district courts have jurisdiction over all admiralty and maritime actions; see 28 U.S.C. § 1333.
In recent years, a pseudolegal conspiracy argument used notably by sovereign citizens[16] is that an American court displaying an American flag with a gold fringe is in fact an "admiralty court" and thus has no jurisdiction. Courts have repeatedly dismissed this as frivolous.[17] In United States v. Greenstreet, the court summarized their finding to this argument with, "Unfortunately for Defendant Greenstreet, decor is not a determinant for jurisdiction."[18]
Notes
References
- ^ .
- .
- ^ "Court of Session Act 1830", Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, vol. 69, p. 21, 23 June 1830,
the Court of Session shall hold and exercise original jurisdiction in all maritime civil causes and proceedings of the same nature and extent in all respects as that held and exercised in regard to such causes by the High Court of Admiralty before the passing of this Act
- ^ England; Britton, John (1808). The beauties of England and Wales; or, Delineations... of each county, by J. Britton and E. W. Brayley [and others]. 18 vols. [in 21]. p. 1012.
- ^ "Tour Through the Eastern Counties of England, by Daniel Defoe; Beginning Page 6". www.pagebypagebooks.com. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
- ^ "Cinque Ports Act 1821". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 24 August 2019.
- ^ a b Meeson & Kimbell 2011, pp9-11
- .
- ^ "Notes on the silver oar of the Admiralty. Court sent to judge Woolsey in December. 1941" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2015.
- ^ "Historical summary". Archived from the original on 10 February 2015.
- ^ Myburgh, Paul; Sutton, Jennifer (2003). "The New Zealand Silver Oar Mace" (PDF). Australian and New Zealand Maritime Law Journal. 17 (7): 118–124.
- ISBN 9780192820846.
- ^ Australian Law Reform Commission, The Development of Admiralty Jurisdiction, Report 33, Chapter 2
- C A Ying, "Colonial and Federal Admiralty Jurisdiction" (1981) 12 Federal Law Review 241.
- ^ "ADMIRALTY JURISDICTION". lawnet.gov.lk. Government of Sri Lanka. Archived from the original on 29 August 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
- ^ De Silva, Sarath. "Structure of Courts under the 1978 Constitution". Daily News. Retrieved 29 August 2019.
- ^ The Sovereigns: A Dictionary of the Peculiar, Southern Poverty Law Center, 1 August 2010, retrieved 20 January 2022
- ^ United States v. Mackovich, 209 F.3d 1227, 1233–1235, fn. 2 (9th Cir. 2000).
- ^ United States v. Greenstreet, 912 F. Supp 224 (N.D. Tex. 1996).
Bibliography
- Meeson, Nigel; Kimbell, John (2011). Admiralty Jurisdiction and Practice (4th ed.). London: Informa Law & Finance. ISBN 9781843119432.
- Sainty, J.C. (1975). Office-holders in Modern Britain: Admiralty Officials 1660-1870. London: Athlone Press. ISBN 0485171449.
- Wiswall, F. L. (1970). The Development of Admiralty Jurisdiction and Practice Since 1800. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521077516.