Christopher & Lee Ong Update: A Long Overdue Change: The Hague-Visby Rules in Malaysia
The Hague Rules impose minimum duties on commercial carriers of goods by sea. The Hague Rules have been – for the best part since the nation’s independence – a part of Malaysian law. Consequently, despite their many faults, the Hague Rules have played a crucial role in oiling the wheels of Malaysia’s sea trade.
As of July 2021, however, the Hague-Visby Rules have now been enacted in West Malaysia. In enacting this improved version of the Hague Rules, the law of carriage of goods by sea in West Malaysia is now in line with that of Malaysia’s major trading partners, and (perhaps, more importantly) fit for trade in the 21st century.
This update by Christopher & Lee Ong explores three key differences between the two sets of Rules (as enacted by the Malaysian Parliament) and the thinking behind them.
