Dry Shipping
Recommended in the field of Shipping & Commodities in Chambers & Partners for fourteen years, as an "outstanding junior" who "punches above her weight in shipping matters. She knows the law and delivers very high-quality work, first time, on time, every time".
Dry shipping work forms a cornerstone of Caroline's practice. She has extensive experience of bill of lading and charterparty disputes, including claims for damage to and/or mis-delivery of cargo, unsafe port cases, claims for early/late redelivery, off-hire disputes, claims for demurrage/damages for detention, claims in respect of off-spec bunkers, claims under letters of indemnity, claims under the NYPE Inter-Club Agreement and cases concerning the application and effect of the Hague, Hague-Visby and Hamburg Rules, and speed and consumption claims.
Illustrative cases include:
- “Ever Given”: Instructed as junior counsel (led by Nigel Jacobs K.C.) on behalf of the owners of the “Ever Given” in their Commercial Court dispute with Smit Salvage B.V. following the high profile grounding in the Suez Canal in March 2021.
- Shagang Shipping Co. Ltd v HNA Group Co. Ltd: Claim for US$60 million in respect of unpaid hire and damages for repudiatory breach of a long term time charterparty, involving allegations of bribery and torture and the correct approach to weighing up evidence alleged to have been obtained by torture. Caroline acted on behalf of the successful claimants at first instance ([2016] EWHC 1103 (Comm), led by Luke Parsons Q.C.), in the Court of Appeal. ([2018] EWCA Civ 1732, led by Dinah Rose Q.C.) and in the Supreme Court ([2020] UKSC 34, led by Lord Pannick Q.C.).
- Claims and counterclaims arising under a Baltime charterparty following a fire on board a Ro-Ro ferry resulting in the vessel becoming a constructive total loss, led by Luke Parsons K.C.
- Unsafe port claim (US$140 million) under an NYPE charterparty in respect of the grounding and total loss of a Capesize vessel off the coast of South Africa, led by Jeremy Russell Q.C.
- Claim for damages in respect of an alleged repudiatory breach of a voyage charter arising out of the owners’ reliance on the war risks and / or sanctions clauses in light of the Russia-Ukraine war.
- Claim for damages / specific performance in respect of the non-performance of obligations owed to the claimant pursuant to a letter of indemnity in respect of the delivery of cargo without production of the original bill of lading.
- Claim for damages in respect of allegedly off-spec bunkers supplied to a containership (involving issues in respect of GCMS testing).
- Multiple claims for damages under various bills of lading (based on alleged unseaworthiness of the vessel) in respect of an explosion on board a chemical tanker, led by Jeremy Russell Q.C.
- Claims arising under various bills of lading and non-negotiable cargo receipts following the grounding of a vessel carrying high-value vehicles in UK waters (led by Luke Parsons Q.C.). Issues arising included the applicable liability regime (i.e. Hague / Hague-Visby), causation and remoteness.
- Claim for an indemnity / damages under a NYPE charterparty in respect of the consequences of the arrest of the chartered vessel at the suit of an unpaid bunker supplier.
- Claim concerning the correct construction of various sanctions clauses in an amended BPVOY charterparty.
- Claim for damages in respect of the seawater contamination of a valuable consignment of rail during the course of carriage (led by Michael Coburn Q.C.).
- Claim for damages for breach of a contract for the design and construction of a luxury yacht.
- Claim for damages under a bareboat charterparty on the Barecon form in respect of the defective condition of the vessel on delivery.
- Claims under various charterparties regarding the allegedly wrongful insistence by the Master on clausing the relevant bills of lading.
Wet Shipping
In addition to the "dry" side of her practice, Caroline also has experience of numerous "wet" and other admiralty matters, including arrests, limitation claims, orders for sale and maritime liens. Illustrative cases include:
- Caroline was instructed as junior counsel (leg by Nigel Jacobs Q.C.) in a substantial claim for damages (based on apportionment pursuant to section 187 of the Merchant Shipping Act 1995) arising out of a grounding and near-miss incident in the Suez Canal, resulting in significant oil pollution.
- An urgent application to the Commercial Court out-of-hours to permit inspection of a vessel in Singapore in respect of a dispute arising under a bareboat charterparty.
- Numerous cases of grounding of vessels – Caroline has a wealth of experience in this area.