Emergency Contact Agapi Terzi: Greek Code of Private Maritime Law – A new chapter Home Latest updates News Agapi Terzi: Greek Code of Private Maritime Law – A new chapter 9 Jun 2023 Download Sign up for alerts For many decades Greece has been at the top of the list of ship owning countries. With 20% of the world’s commercial fleet controlled by Greek companies and more than a thousand offices established in Greece, offering ship management, ship brokerage, insurance, legal and finance services. This maritime dominance provoked the enactment, in 1958, of the Greek Code of Private Maritime Law (3816/1958) which aimed to address the needs of all shipping activities within the Greek jurisdiction.  Sixty-five years later, a new chapter begins for the Greek (maritime) jurisdiction and the Greek shipping industry, as the new Code of Maritime Private Law came into effect on 1 May 2023. The main purpose of the new Code is to align the national law with international conventions already in force and offer better protection to seafarers by providing a more concrete framework supporting their working life. These changes will inevitably boost legal certainty, enhance transparency, and will better regulate modern forms of shipping operations. Significant changes In an effort to ensure that domestic law guarantees the protection and rights enumerated in the various international conventions, there are significant changes that are being implemented, some of which are particularly relevant to the scope of the Club’s P&I and Legal Costs Cover. In particular: The definition for ships and ‘static’ crafts (depending on whether the vessel is motile or stationary) has now been introduced. The use of electronic shipping documents (B/L, other cargo documents and charterparties) is permitted. Damages for wrongful arrests are now available (provisions now include the detention of a ship as provisional order in anticipation of a judgment for conservative seizure). Maritime Liens: Allo