The Legal Effect of Jurisdictional Provisions on Bill of Lading——Practical Examinations and Rule Continuation
The jurisdictional clause on bill of lading is a product of the carrier's effort to seek the most favorable court and applicable law to avoid litigation risks.The current laws in China partially recognize the effect of the jurisdictional clauses on bills of lading,but they are scattered,vague,and lack predictability.Such clauses are a special form of agreement jurisdic-tion and their theoretical source is the principle of autonomy of will.There is a theoretical con-troversy over the legal effect of such clause and at the core of the controversy are different inter-pretations of the"limitations on the autonomy of will".In judicial practice in China,the choice of courts outside jurisdiction is mostly invalid for such reasons as lack of practical connection,non-compliance with standard terms,and inability to reflect the agreement of the parties in-volved.Approaches to establishing China's rules on the jurisdiction over bill of lading clauses include balancing judicial sovereignty and international comity,formulating objective connection as the basis for practical connection standards,and constructing specific rules by clarifying the specific requirements of standard clauses.Resolving the relevant theoretical controversy with the legal effect of jurisdictional clause on bill of lading contributes to the development of the agree-ment jurisdiction system and the gradual coordination of judicial practices in China.In recent years,the international situation has undergone significant changes and the number of maritime cases accepted by Chinese courts has increased drastically.The increase in bill-of-lading dis-putes is particularly prominent.Through a jurisdictional clause,the parties directly agree in a bill of lading the court with jurisdiction over disputes arising from the bill of lading.Clarifying the legal effect of such clauses enhances judicial efficiency and the predictability of judicial doc-uments.However,neither the Chinese Civil Code nor the Maritime Law of China directly stipu-lates the legal effect of jurisdictional clauses on bills of lading.The determination of the effect of jurisdictional clauses on bills of lading is important to the international justice of China.In some cases,courts do not have a clear judgment standard and make controversial judgments.As a re-sult,the parties refuse to accept the verdict and appeal the case to the highest court,leading to a great waste of judicial resources.As a result of the international cooperation under the"Belt and Road Initiative"and the vigorous construction of the"Maritime Silk Road",there is an ur-gent demand for the proper settlement of bill of lading disputes and for the modernization of Chi-na's maritime justice.This paper,by initiating the discussion on the effect of the jurisdictional clauses on bills of lading,hopes to contribute to the infrastructure connection under the"Belt and Road Initiative".
NETL
NSTL
万方数据
维普
