Decision ID: 000690

In October 1996 the 1971 Fund Executive Committee considered that the judgement by the Court of first instance in Guadaloupe was wrong on two points in that firstly, the 1969 Civil Liability Convention, which formed part of French law, applied to damage caused in a State party to that Convention, irrespective of the State of the ship’s registry, and secondly, that the French courts were competent under Article IX.I of the Convention to consider claims for damage in any State party. The Committee decided, however, that since the Court’s decision regarding the applicability of the Conventions would hardly have any value as a precedent in other cases, and since the Court had awarded the Fund the total amount paid by it for damage in the French territories, and in view of the insignificant amount paid by the Fund for damage outside these territories, the Fund should not appeal against the judgement.