The Black Sea Law Company has successfully defended the interests of one of the largest exporters in Ukraine!

This case concerns a breach of a supply contract. In addition to the fact that Buyer did not accept the goods, the documents of the title were lost, and therefore the Seller had no right to independently dispose of the goods.

In international trade, the parties generally choose arbitration. Without a doubt, it is always fast, efficient, and effective. In Ukraine, the practice of international commercial arbitration is developing more and more every year. International Commercial Arbitration Court at the Ukrainian CCI (the ICAC) is a flagship institution among the arbitration institutions in Central and Eastern Europe and a recognized arbitration institution worldwide. The Black Sea Law Company appealed to the ICAC. Сertainly, the award was in our Client’s favor.

However, it is not enough just to get an arbitral award, it is more important to enforce it. The Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards, also known as the “New York Convention 1958”, is one of the key instruments in international arbitration. The New York Convention applies to the recognition and enforcement of foreign arbitral awards. The New York Convention is considered one of the most successful. As of 2020, the Convention has 166 state parties, which includes 162 of the 193 United Nations member states, and Ukraine is one of them.

In our case, the countries of both companies are parties to the New York Convention. As a result of negotiations, the Defendant paid the debt in the case and fully complied with the arbitration award!

This case handled by Evgeniy Sukachev Senior Partner, Anastasiya Sukacheva Partner, Irina Dolya Associate

Black Sea Law Company successfully provided legal assistance in the shipbuilding project!

As you know, shipbuilding contracts require extremely professionalism, because this industry is highly capital intensive. Our maritime lawyers drafted the shipbuilding contracts and provide advice to our Client on contractual issues. It is important for us that our Client has avoided possible financial losses for business and made the right choice according to our recommendations.

Overview of the shipbuilding industry in Ukraine

Shipbuilding is considered to be one of the oldest, most open, and highly competitive markets in the world. Much of the world’s shipbuilding today is concentrated in Asian countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea, although large shipyards also exist in many other countries. Ukraine is one of those countries where shipbuilding develops more and more every year.

Ukrainian shipbuilding companies are mostly concentrated in the Nikolaev and Kherson regions. Dealings concerning shipbuilding contracts and sale and purchase agreements are regulated by the Civil and Commercial Codes of Ukraine. Ukrainian law allows the parties to define the wording of obligations and rights, the means of fulfillment of the contract, and any other terms and conditions of purchase. The parties are entitled to conclude both preliminary agreements and additional agreements. As soon as an agreement is finalised, it is deemed to have been accepted by all parties. The parties also define the form of the agreement (whether in writing or certified by a notary). Title passes to the buyer when the ship is delivered in accordance with the acceptance protocol; however, the parties can opt for an alternative means for the ship’s title to pass. By concluding the preliminary agreement, the purchaser has control of the shipbuilding process.

It is preferable for the parties to declare the amount of the bank guarantee provided by the shipyard during the construction period. Penalties for non-performance of the agreement may be included in the wording of the agreement. In the event of a shipyard’s failure to fulfill any provision of the contract, the purchaser has the right to apply to the court for reimbursement of costs.

According to the changes to Article 151 of the Customs Code, objects for shipbuilding and ship reconstruction shall be under customs control for up to 730 days. The reconstruction customs regime is usually used for foreign vessels that proceed to Ukrainian shipyards for reconstruction.

The shipbuilding prospects in Ukraine are in the development process and the shipbuilding industry is now focused on sea-river models of tankers, general cargo vessels, and sailing yachts.

You can read a full overview of Shipping Law in Ukraine in our chapter – The Shipping Law Review, Edition 7

Every three months, Shiparrested.com brings news cover ship arrest/release law written by members.

In the latest issue of The Arrest News, members take a look at the peculiarities of the high-profile Force India case; vague details of the IMO’s Marine Incident Report and their full disclosure in arbitral/legal proceedings; a precedent decision in Ukraine regarding the use of the P&I club LOU, resolutions to perceived conflicts in legislation from the Bombay High Court; and Covid-19’s continued impact on the sale of goods carried by sea.

Evgeniy Sukachev, Senior Partner Black Sea Law Company as a member of Shiparrested.com shares the latest article!

Read the full text of our latest article at «The Arrest News» on the Shiparrested.com or view the PDF.

On 29 September 2020 Evgeniy Sukachev, Senior Partner at Black Sea Law Company, gave an online lecture for Judges of Ukraine on “Ukrainian legislation and International Conventions in Maritime law”. The event was held with the collaboration and support of the National School of Judges of Ukraine, and Judges from Commercial jurisdictions from all regions of Ukraine took part in this event!

After an overview of the main International Conventions in Maritime law, the participants discussed trending issues such as:

The sources of the International Law
Practice aspects of Maritime claims under Ukrainian law
Definition of Ownership and Operation of ships in maritime claims
LOU, Bank Guarantee and Court Deposit: mechanism of using
The P&I Clubs: their role in Shipping business

The National School of Judges of Ukraine is the educational body of the Ministry of Justice in Ukraine for developing practical legal skills of the judges’ society.

Such cooperation between the National School of Judges of Ukraine and Black Sea Law Company started in 2016 and shows the excellent result: it more than interesting to feel the natural interest from the judges, even who never have had a maritime claim in their proceedings, for the new part of the legislation. Furthermore, the judges who are practicing with Maritime claims used to start discussions regarding controversial practical questions in legislation and current practice, which is very interesting and fruitful.

Our Company is always open for cooperation and regularly supports educational events for practicing Lawyers, Attorneys, and Judges in Maritime Law. In the coming month, we will hold the next Seminar for Judges, which will be related to arrest proceedings of the seagoing vessels in the Ukrainian jurisdiction.

Follow us on social media to keep up-to-date with the latest news!

The implementation of international maritime law is one of the priority directions for the development of Shipping & Transport in Ukraine. The Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine regularly informs about the opening of draft laws for discussion and conducts consultations with public organizations, lawyers, and business representatives.

We pay considerable attention to the work on draft laws, and with this in mind, the lawyers of the Black Sea Law Company have prepared recommendations on draft laws on the ratification of important international maritime conventions for Ukraine.

Thus, we have prepared our recommendations to the draft law on the ratification of the Maritime Labor Convention, 2006.

The recommendations were formed on the basis of Ukrainian legislation, international treaties ratified by Ukraine, recommendations and actual practice of the Comite Maritime International (CMI), the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA), the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS), and the current text of the Maritime Labor Convention, in 2006, taking into account the experience of Black Sea Law Company specialists.

The second important issue – Recommendations on a draft law on amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine regarding Ukraine’s accession to the Ballast Water Management Convention.

The Laws mentioned above were drafted for the Association Agreement between the European Union and Ukraine. So, we hope that these Laws will be adopted by the Ukrainian Parliament in the near future.

We are pleased to announce the annual publication from Black Sea Law Company: Shipping 2020, published by Law Business Research.

Cross-jurisdiction analysis of maritime regulation for the international shipping industry. Leading local practitioners outline the laws for their jurisdiction, treating the following topics: newbuilding contracts, ship registration and mortgages, limitation of liability, port state control, classification societies, collision, salvage, wreck removal and pollution, ship arrest, judicial sale of vessels, carriage of goods by sea and bills of lading, jurisdiction and dispute resolution and limitation periods for liability.

Our Company focused on aspects of Shipping, Insurance, and Commercial Law, as well as Arbitration and Litigation. The “boutique” service is the best way to deliver effective cross-jurisdictional specialized legal solutions. With this in mind, we regularly provide an in-depth and detailed analysis of current legislation in these areas. Thanks to The Law Business Research and Getting The Deal Through for this opportunity!

The working week, as always, starts with positive news! The Black Sea Law Company recently participated in the preparation of a legal position to protect the interests of a foreign Shipowner regarding a maritime claim (an incident occurred in Ukraine). Our lawyers provided a complete analysis of the prospects for resolving the dispute in the LMAA with the Charterer.

Despite the fact that both parties had considerable claims against each other, through negotiations, proper preparation, and justification of the legal position, it was decided to sign a settlement agreement and resolve all disputes in a pre-trial (pre-arbitration) procedure. In this way, both Parties did not incur additional costs and, most importantly, did not waste extra time. Note, that Arbitration plays a key role as an alternative dispute resolution, and Black Sea Law Company lawyers have invaluable experience in resolving maritime disputes in arbitration.

Black Sea Law Company has successfully defended the interests of foreign shipowners! During the last month, there were two incidents related to the pollution of one of the Ukrainian ports where Our Team has been involved on behalf of P&I and Members’ side.

As a result of the excellent work and well-structured defense, both ships have sailed the port, and we wish them #happysailing!

These two incidents were monitored by almost all representatives of the maritime sector. And no wonder, because during the month there were several attempts to impose wrongful arrests on ships, which were not successful.

Moreover, there have been provided the judicial precedent: the Commercial Court of Odessa region has accepted the first time ever in Ukrainian legislation practice the classical procedure on the P&I Club’s Letter of Undertaking in one of these cases! That is why the recognition of the LOU in Ukraine is one of the most important professional achievements for us and our clients from all over the world!

The Black Sea Law Company assists Сlients with all aspects of the vessel and yachts sale and purchase process. Sale & Purchase of ships is one of the most important aspects of the shipping industry, which requires different types of knowledge, such as the technical characteristics of the ship, its area of navigation, the corporate structure of the operator, and shipowner, and of course the negotiating skills.

There are three main stages for the sale and purchase of a ship which include: negotiation, verification of the technical characteristics of the vessel, and the final stage – signing the agreement and transferring the vessel and all technical documentation to the new Owner. Legal support of the purchase and sale of ships and yachts is a complex and multifaceted process, and the price of such an agreement can be over 100 million US dollars. That is why Shipowners should enlist the help of highly qualified specialists and avoid all possible negative consequences for their own business.

We are proud to go ahead with the best international professionals on insurance and reinsurance law and practice in such stormy times!

Black Sea Law Company Team is strong and efficient in these fields and ready to support our Clients 24/7.

This is our 3-rd Legal Guide and we look forward to great long term cooperation!

Insurance & Reinsurance 2020 – practical cross-border insight into insurance and reinsurance law. The Guide covers common issues in insurance and reinsurance laws and regulations, including regulatory authorities and procedures, (re)insurance claims, litigation – overview, litigation – procedure and arbitration – in 39 jurisdictions.