The Maritime Law

The Maritime Law is one of the unique fields of specialization of the law firm Doron Tikotzky Kantor Gutman & Amit Gross. The office specializes in a wide spectrum of issues associated with the Maritime Law and the sea transport, including lease contracts, sea-crafts arrests, claims for torts to cargo, maritime insurance, international deliveries, etc. The office functions in collaboration with Adv. John Harris, an international expert in maritime laws, recommended Legal 500.

What is the Maritime Law?
The Maritime Law, in the country as well as worldwide, is based on the British Admiralty Law legislated in the 12th Century in Britain by the British Crown Regent Eleanor of Aquitaine. In the aim to enforce the maritime law, special maritime tribunals were set up, being entrusted only with the handling of legal disputes and disagreements in seamanship. Until today, the uniqueness of these tribunals handling legal trials in Britain is preserved; such tribunals are not subject to the customary legal tradition in Britain, but act as civil tribunals in conformity with the Justinian Code.

Maritime Law Issues
The Maritime Law regularizes in fact all disputes occurring at sea and is mostly based on precedents at British tribunals. At the beginning, the Maritime law intended to settle the most fundamental legal topics that may occur at sea, as of saving people from drowning, saving property, labor relations between the Captains of the craft and its teams, and obviously, the rules of the maritime trade. As the international trade developed increasingly, and more goods were carried to their destination by sea, the scope of the maritime laws increased accordingly.

The Maritime Law in Israel
Israel, ruled by the British Mandate, has adopted many of the principles in the English law system and has enforced the maritime law procedure in 1937, as part of the Mandate Supreme Court authorities, as it was most customary at the British colonial tribunals. In 1952 the authorities of this court were transferred to the District Court in Haifa, and since then this is the only court competent by virtue of the law to hear maritime, shipping and similar topics.

Doron, Tikotzky, Kantor Gutman & Amit Gross firm has accumulated expertise and experience in this unique law, and puts at the disposal to its clients the knowledge and skills accumulated during the years in maritime issues.