《装卸时间与滞期费》第3章-装卸时间的起算-连载47

　　CHAPTER 3 第3章

　　Commencement of laytime 装卸时间的起算

　　Custom 习惯/惯例

　　3.361 The effect of custom in modern charters is likely to be minimal, since for a custom to have any effect, it must be shown to be not inconsistent with any express terms of the charter and, of course, most charters provide expressly when laytime is to commence.

　　3.361习惯的作用在现代租船合同中似乎是在减弱，因为作为习惯，它的作用不能与租船合同中的明示条文相抵触。当然，在大多数的租船合同中都明确规定了装卸时间何时起算。

　　3.362 In Postlethwaite v. Freeland, Lord Blackburn said:

　　The jurors were told, and I think quite correctly, that ‘‘custom’’ in the charterparty did not mean custom in the sense in which the word is sometimes used by lawyers, but meant a settled and established practice of the port...

　　3.362在 Postlethwaite v. Freeland案中，Blackburn勋爵曾经说过：

　　陪审员们被告知，而且我认为这也是完全正确的，即租船合同中的‘习惯’一词并不同于律师们有时所指的习惯的那种含义，而是指长期形成的和明确建立起来的港口常规做法……

　　3.363 To prove any custom is difficult, because it involves establishing that it is not only reasonable and certain, but invariably accepted by ships and merchants using the port concerned.

　　3.363要证实某种习惯是十分困难的，因为它不仅应是合理而肯定的，而且还要为使用港口的有关船舶和商人所始终接受。

　　3.364 The effect of a custom may be either to advance or delay when laytime commences for the vessel concerned. In Norrkopings Rederiaktiebolag v. Wulfsberg & Co, a vessel was chartered to carry a cargo of pitprops to Hull under a fixed laytime port charter and the question arose as to when laytime commenced. Having said that a custom of the port might be reduced to writing for the convenience of shipowners and merchants, Greer J continued:

　　Looking at the statement of the custom and practice of the port there are the words: ‘‘When a wood laden ship is chartered for the port of Hull simply and without prescribing any particular dock for discharge the receiver has the right to order her on or before arrival to any available dock, which she can forthwith enter and deliver her cargo.’’ In my judgment that means that the vessel is not an arrived vessel until she enters the dock to which she has been ordered for the purpose of discharge by the receiver of the cargo. I think that extends her carrying voyage up to the time she gets into the dock to which she is ordered for the purpose of discharge.

　　3.364习惯的作用要么是使某船舶的装卸时间的起算提前，要么是使其延后。Norrkopings Rederiaktiebolag v. Wulfsberg & Co案中，该轮是以固定装卸时间的港口租船合同出租前往赫尔港运载矿井支柱。所产生的争议是装卸时间应从何时起算。Greer法官说：为了船东和货主的方便起见，可以把港口习惯写下来时，他接着又说：

　　查看该港口的习惯/惯例和通常做法的陈述声明是这样说的：‘当某轮被租用满载着木材驶往赫尔港时，若未规定具体卸货码头，则收货人有权在船舶抵达前或抵达时指示该轮前往一个她能即刻驶入并能卸货的任何空闲的码头。’就我看来，这意味着船舶只有在收货人为使其卸货而指示给她进入码头后，她才算为抵达船。我认为，这就延长了该轮的载运航程的时间，直至她为了卸货而驶入指示的码头时为止。

　　3.365 Norden Steamship Co v. Dempsey is another illustration to similar effect. Here a charter provided for the cargo to be discharged at a certain dock. The shipowners claimed that the vessel was entitled to give notice of readiness and commence laytime on arrival in dock. However, a custom at that port to the effect that in such circumstances time did not start until the vessel was in berth was held to prevail.

　　3.365在Norden Steamship Co v. Dempsey案，是又一个展示这种效果的案件。在该案中，租船合同要求在某一码头卸货，船东主张该轮有权在抵达码头时递交准备就绪通知书并起算装卸时间。不过，按该港的习惯，在这种情况下，船舶只有靠泊后才能起算装卸时间，最后判定应优先适用该港的习惯规定。

　　3.366 In addition to local custom taking effect as an implied term, as in the above examples, a charter may expressly refer to custom. Thus, in one case where by charter a ship was to ‘‘deliver according to the custom of the port’’, this was held to refer not only to the manner of delivery, but included a custom whereby laytime did not start until the ship was berthed under the superintendence of the harbour master.

　　3.366另外，像上述案例一样，地方的习惯有默示条款的作用，租船合同可以明示规定参照该习惯。这样一来，在某一案例中，某轮是以‘按某港习惯交货’出租，被判定为：不仅要依照习惯的交货方式，而且还要依照习惯起算装卸时间，即，一直等到该轮在港务局长的监督下靠妥泊位时才可起算。
　　

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　　海运圈聚焦专栏作者 魏长庚船长（微信号CaptWei）