Maritime law Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Maritime law - Coursework Example That notwithstanding, it is important to also note that an action in tem can only be taken by the plaintiff who has obtained a statutory or maritime lien against the ship and proceedings can only be instituted where a vessel is within/present in the jurisdiction of the state the proceedings are taking place (Bluesteinlawoffice.com, n.d.). Some of the advantages of proceeding in rem include: first the vessel is assumed to be the defendant, thus, eliminating the challenges of the owner being present within the jurisdiction. Thus, this allows the proceedings to continue even in the absence of the vessel owner (Okoli, 2010). Secondly, proceedings in rem require no prior notice as long as a vessel is within the jurisdiction by only the claimant taking an oath in a court. Thirdly, proceedings in rem allow a claimant to arrest a ship and continue with proceedings as in personam (Okoli, 2010). Fourthly, if proceedings in rem are successful, a court rule can dictate that the res be disposed and proceeds used to settle claimants, thus, providing a form of guarantee and security to the claimants (Shrikant and Binita, 2014). For admiralty courts to entertain applications for vessel arrests the following conditions must be satisfied: (1) the dispute must involve maritime claim implying that the claim must be connected to shipping; (2) the claimant must prove that the ship in question has connection with the claim; (3) granting of warranty of arrest is unconditional on the claimant to make all disclosures of any material facts during the application for warranty of arrest such no proceedings have been instituted in another country (Woollam, 2010). Thus, having satisfied the conditions above the process of arrest follows the following procedure: The arrest warrant and writ are served the moment the vessel is within the jurisdiction by an officer of the HM Customs who acts on instructions from the Admiralty. After